S.Korean President calls for early ratification of FTA
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South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Saturday called for early ratification of a new free trade agreement (FTA) between Seoul and Washington reached on Friday, noting it will "bring huge economic benefits for both", according to Seoul's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.
The agreement equally reflects interests of both nations, and has formed a win-win foundation for the two sides, Lee said in a national address Saturday morning.
As the FTA will "bring huge economic benefits for both", it will also become an opportunity to promote further development of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, Lee said.
Lee said he hoped that the legislatures in both countries would quickly ratify the new FTA so that the pact can "finally bear fruits."
South Korea and the United States on Friday reached a deal on a pending FTA between the two nations after four days of negotiations held in Columbia in the U.S. state of Maryland.
Seoul's chief trade negotiator, Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon, said both sides "have produced a substantial outcome on the autos and other limited areas" during the talks, according to media report.
Seoul made "big compromise" on the autos, as it agreed to postpone for five years the abolition of 2.5 percent U.S. tariffs on South Korean auto imports, and agreed as well to increase the number of any U.S. automakers' cars that will be exempted from its strict safety standards as long as they meet U.S. federal standards from 6,500 to 25,000, local media said.
But Seoul sticked its stand in agricultural and beef industry.
Autos and beef have been the major hurdles to the ratification of the U.S.-South Korea FTA signed in 2007 under the Bush administration, with South Korean opposition groups demanding modification in terms related to beef industry and those in the U. S. enraged over auto industry-related clauses.
South Korea has signed free trade agreements with three large economies in the world, namely the United States, the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
