ISAS Briefs

Sri Lanka and Singapore recently signed the Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA). Apart from being a comprehensive and modern free trade agreement in scope and coverage, the SLSFTA paves the way for Sri Lanka’s greater integration with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and possible future entry in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. Reflecting on the challenges for optimising the benefits of the SLSFTA, this paper argues that a successful SLSFTA would vindicate the region’s confidence in the virtues of free trade.