Anand Sharma slams Piyush Goyal for calling ASEAN the B team of China

Trade Minister Piyush Goyal for his statements against the Indian-Asean trade agreements, former Minister of Commerce and Congress Anand Sharma on Friday, the Southeast Asian countries “China’s B Team irresponsible and insulting” labeling.

Speaking at the Indian Global Forum (IGF) session at the British-Indian Science, Technology and Innovation cooperation at the Science Museum in London on Thursday, Mr. Goyal said that India focused more on making free trade agreements with our “rivals” countries (FTA) 15 years ago.

“So, if I make an ASEAN agreement, it’s really stupid because many of them open to my competitors that make my market become China’s B team (ie).

Watch | Optuy Goyal about the India-US Trade Agreement before 9 July

Sharma, who refutes the statement, said that consecutive Indian governments consciously maintain this policy and raise India-Asean relations to a strategic partnership.

“Trade Minister Piyush Goyal’s expression that underestimates the Indian ASEAN trade agreements is unfair, bad advice and unfortunate. India and ASEAN countries have been in a mutual rewarding and important multi -faceted relationship for more than thirty years,” he said.

‘An integral part of the eastern policy’

“This is an integral part of Eastern policy to deepen and diversify its relations with an enormous geo-strategic region to participate in India’s vivid and Asian-Pacific region,” he said.

The Congress leader said that India is also a member of the ASEAN + SIX (Japan, India, South Korea, China, Australia and New Zealand) East Asian Summit (EAS), and Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysian strategic countries.

Sharma, “Puussia Goyal’s ASEAN’ın trade agreement with stupid and these countries as China’s B team is irresponsible and insulted. Indonesia Prabowo Subio’nun president of the president of the 2025 Republican day of the parade ceremony has forgotten that the guest of the day,” he said.

Authorized, Japan and South Korea and ASEAN and Trade agreements and CECA (Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement) investments and goods and service trade aims to encourage.

‘Suboptimal Trade Agreement with the US’

“Piyush Goyal needs to remind the basic trade rule: ‘No country cannot export those who do not import or do not need.’ Congress veteran.

Considering the interests of India in this living region, Mr. Sharma argued that the agreements were carefully negotiated and established controls and examination mechanisms were applied. He added that the trade of goods with ASEAN countries includes basic imports: Iron ore from Indonesia and coal, palm oil from Malaysia and Indonesia, Brunei Dares Salam and Petroleum products from Malaysia and Pulse from Myanmar.

“Partnerships, not exclusion and isolation in a world connected and interconnected in each other. The Minister of Commerce should give priority to strengthening trade relations with common countries and insult an insufficient trade agreement with the US under conditions,” he said.