ID :
44840
Mon, 02/09/2009 - 10:20
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/44840
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S. Korea signs contract with U.S. lobbyist for FTA ratification: source
By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea has signed a contract with a U.S. lobbyist to facilitate congressional ratification of a pending free trade deal, an informed source said Sunday, amid growing opposition to the pact fueled by the global economic crisis.
The South Korean embassy here signed the six-month contract with Parven Pomper
Strategies in December, the source said, adding the contract worth US$120,000
became effective as of Jan. 1 this year and can be renewed once on the same terms
and conditions.
The Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, signed in June 2007, has been in limbo as
the Democratic-led Congress in Washington has remained reluctant to back the deal
due to opposition from trade unions, which fear possible job losses amid the
worsening global economic crisis.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton proposed renegotiation of the free trade deal,
known as KORUS FTA, at a Senate confirmation hearing last month, citing an
imbalance in auto trade and restrictions in beef shipments.
"If the South Koreans are willing to re-engage negotiations on these vital
provisions of the agreement, we will work with them to get to resolution,"
Clinton said, calling on South Korea to provide "genuine improvements" in the
auto industry and other market sectors.
Clinton is due in Seoul next week on the third leg of her Asia tour, her first
overseas trip since taking office last month, and is expected to discuss the FTA
with Seoul officials.
U.S. President Barack Obama, who once called the Korea FTA "badly flawed," has
also noted the auto trade issue, saying that South Korea exports more than
700,000 autos to the U.S. annually while importing just 6,000.
South Korea contests such statistics, saying the figures include 250,000 units
made in the U.S. at an Alabama plant owned by South Korea's largest automaker,
Hyundai, and exclude more than 125,000 automobiles sold in South Korea by GM
Daewoo, a Korean subsidiary of U.S. automaker GM.
Neither parliament has ratified the free trade deal.
Officials under former U.S. President George W. Bush have said the FTA will boost
U.S. GDP by US$10 billion to $12 billion annually, helping the U.S. economy
recover from the current economic recession.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea has signed a contract with a U.S. lobbyist to facilitate congressional ratification of a pending free trade deal, an informed source said Sunday, amid growing opposition to the pact fueled by the global economic crisis.
The South Korean embassy here signed the six-month contract with Parven Pomper
Strategies in December, the source said, adding the contract worth US$120,000
became effective as of Jan. 1 this year and can be renewed once on the same terms
and conditions.
The Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, signed in June 2007, has been in limbo as
the Democratic-led Congress in Washington has remained reluctant to back the deal
due to opposition from trade unions, which fear possible job losses amid the
worsening global economic crisis.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton proposed renegotiation of the free trade deal,
known as KORUS FTA, at a Senate confirmation hearing last month, citing an
imbalance in auto trade and restrictions in beef shipments.
"If the South Koreans are willing to re-engage negotiations on these vital
provisions of the agreement, we will work with them to get to resolution,"
Clinton said, calling on South Korea to provide "genuine improvements" in the
auto industry and other market sectors.
Clinton is due in Seoul next week on the third leg of her Asia tour, her first
overseas trip since taking office last month, and is expected to discuss the FTA
with Seoul officials.
U.S. President Barack Obama, who once called the Korea FTA "badly flawed," has
also noted the auto trade issue, saying that South Korea exports more than
700,000 autos to the U.S. annually while importing just 6,000.
South Korea contests such statistics, saying the figures include 250,000 units
made in the U.S. at an Alabama plant owned by South Korea's largest automaker,
Hyundai, and exclude more than 125,000 automobiles sold in South Korea by GM
Daewoo, a Korean subsidiary of U.S. automaker GM.
Neither parliament has ratified the free trade deal.
Officials under former U.S. President George W. Bush have said the FTA will boost
U.S. GDP by US$10 billion to $12 billion annually, helping the U.S. economy
recover from the current economic recession.
