UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — India and Gulf Cooperation Council Sign Joint Statement on the India–GCC Free Trade Agreement

Q1. Following the February 2026 Joint Statement, the negotiations for the India–GCC Free Trade Agreement are led on the Indian side by which one of the following as the nodal agency?

• A. Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry
• B. Economic Diplomacy Division, Ministry of External Affairs
• C. Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance
• D. Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)

Q2. The India–GCC FTA negotiations launched by the February 2026 Joint Statement are being conducted with the GCC as a single bloc comprising how many member states?

• A. Five
• B. Six
• C. Seven
• D. Eight

Q3. The Secretariat General (headquarters) of the Gulf Cooperation Council is located in the capital of which one of its member states?

• A. Saudi Arabia (Riyadh)
• B. United Arab Emirates (Abu Dhabi)
• C. Qatar (Doha)
• D. Kuwait (Kuwait City)

Q4. India's trade with the GCC of USD 178.56 billion, which makes the GCC India's largest trading-partner bloc, pertains to which financial year?

• A. FY 2022-23
• B. FY 2023-24
• C. FY 2024-25
• D. FY 2025-26

Q5. The Department of Commerce, which handles India's trade engagement with the GCC, functions exclusively under which one of the following Union ministries?

• A. Ministry of Commerce and Industry
• B. Ministry of External Affairs
• C. Ministry of Finance
• D. Ministry of Corporate Affairs

Q6. With reference to the evolution of India–GCC free-trade engagement, consider the following statements: Which of the above statements is/are NOT correct?

1. The India–GCC Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation was signed in 2004.
2. Two rounds of India–GCC FTA negotiations were held in 2006 and 2008 and then paused.
3. India and the GCC decided to pursue resumption of FTA negotiations in 2022.
4. The India–GCC Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation was signed at Riyadh in 2010.

• A. 1 and 3
• B. 4 only
• C. 2 and 4
• D. 3 only

Q7. The first two rounds of India–GCC FTA negotiations (2006 and 2008) were conducted under which instrument that had earlier laid the basis for economic cooperation?

• A. India–GCC Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation (2004)
• B. India–UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
• C. India–GCC Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
• D. SAARC Framework Agreement on Trade in Services

Q8. As of 2026, India has signed bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs) with exactly how many individual GCC member states?

• A. One
• B. Two
• C. Four
• D. Six

Q9. Which GCC member state was the first to operationalise a bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India?

• A. United Arab Emirates
• B. Oman
• C. Saudi Arabia
• D. Qatar

Q10. With reference to the signing of the India–GCC FTA Terms of Reference (5 February 2026) and the subsequent Joint Statement, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. On the Indian side the Terms of Reference were signed by Ajay Bhadoo, Additional Secretary and Chief Negotiator, Department of Commerce.
2. On the GCC side the Terms of Reference were signed by Dr. Raja Al Marzouqi, Chief Negotiator of the GCC Secretariat General.
3. The February 2026 Joint Statement was signed on India's behalf by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal.

• A. 1 only
• B. 1 and 2 only
• C. 2 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3

Q11. Comparing the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) with other regional groupings, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. The GCC was established in 1981, whereas ASEAN was established in 1967.
2. The GCC implemented a customs union in 2015 as part of deeper economic integration.
3. The GCC already has a single common currency in circulation among all its members, on the pattern of the euro adopted by the European Union.

• A. 1 only
• B. 1 and 2 only
• C. 2 and 3 only
• D. 1, 2 and 3