S. Korean legislators to discuss FTA, better ties with Obama aides

By Shin Hae-in
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- A bipartisan group of South Korean legislators will
arrive in Washington later Monday to hold talks with aides of incoming U.S.
leader Barack Obama on a range of bilateral issues, officials said.
The parliamentary delegation, led by ruling party lawmaker Park Jin, will discuss
the smooth transition of ties between the allies and push for early approval of a
pending trade pact.
Meeting with aides of President-elect Barack Obama including Tom Daschle, Chuck
Hagel, Gorden Flake and Frank Januzzi, the team will express hopes of promptly
settling the Seoul-Washington free trade agreement (FTA) and discuss the two
countries' cooperation in denuclearizing North Korea.
"We will make efforts to explain how we see the FTA benefiting both sides and why
the financial crisis should be solved via free trade," Rep. Park of the ruling
Grand National Party said. "We will also discuss other economic issues, North
Korea's denuclearization and ways of strengthening Korea-U.S. ties."
The FTA, struck between former Korean president Roh Moo-hyun and his counterpart
George W. Bush after year-long negotiations, has been pending with the
legislatures of both countries for over a year.
Seoul's conservative Lee Myung-bak government and his party have been seeking
immediate parliamentary approval of the much-delayed trade pact, seeing it as a
chance of boosting the economic initiatives amid the ongoing economic
uncertainties.
Opposition parties remain skeptical toward early passage of the bill, citing
growing uncertainties in the Democratic-controlled U.S. Congress. Yet Seoul's
ruling party, controlling an absolute majority of 172 seats in the 299-member
unicameral house, holds sway over the final decision.
Experts say chances for the trade bill's approval by the U.S. Congress may become
slimmer under the Obama administration.
During the course of his campaign, Obama has repeatedly expressed his opposition
to aspects of the pending trade deal with Korea, citing an imbalance in auto
trade between the two nations.
The South Korean delegation will also visit the Brookings Institution, a think
tank of Obama's Democratic Party, the Peterson Institute for International
Economics and the Center for Strategic and International Studies during its stay
in Washington.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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