While free trade purists have always rejected regional and plurilateral trading arrangements, the WTO's charter chose to be pragmatic and regarded RTAs and FTAs as building blocks of, rather than barriers to, the multilateral trading system.

Strategic autonomy is not secured by merely asserting one's independence: it is secured by creating mutually beneficial interdependencies.

India's difficulties in negotiating an FTA with both the ASEAN and E.U. are a reminder of the importance of multilateralism.

Sanjaya Baru Quotes