KORUS FTA implementation to bring prosperity to Korea, U.S.: Obama

By Hwang Doo-hyong

WASHINGTON, May 21 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President Barack Obama has said that his country's pending free trade deal with South Korea will promote the prosperity of both countries once implemented, the South Korean Embassy here said Thursday.

Obama made the remarks while receiving credentials Wednesday from South Korean
Ambassador Han Duck-soo, who came here in March to replace Lee Tae-sik, the
embassy said in a statement.
"The FTA with South Korea, the seventh biggest trading partner for South Korea,
will enhance prosperity for the peoples of the two countries," Obama was quoted
as saying.
At a summit between the two leaders in London last month, the first of its kind,
Lee and Obama "agreed that the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement could bring
benefits to both countries and are committed to working together to chart a way
forward."
The remarks came as trade officials of the two countries are trying to find ways
to address U.S. concerns over what it calls lopsided auto trade and restricted
shipments of U.S. beef.
Complaining about the auto trade, Obama has been reluctant to send the KORUS FTA,
signed in 2007, to Congress for a vote amid growing protectionist sentiment among
Democrats in the worst recession in decades.
South Korea says GM Daewoo last year sold more than 110,000 units, or 11.7
percent of the Korean market, compared to Hyundai and Kia Motors' less than 7
percent market share in the U.S., which includes hundreds of thousands of autos
produced by Hyundai Motor's plant in Alabama.
South Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon met with U.S. Trade Representative
(USTR) Ron Kirk last week and said they agreed to "find a solution as soon as
possible, although we have some difficulties."
Kim also said that he made it clear to Kirk that it is "not appropriate to touch
the text of the deal."
He did not rule out the possibility of the Korea FTA being ratified by the end of
the year, citing several meetings between South Korean President Lee Myung-bak
and U.S. President Barack Obama that are scheduled for the coming months, both
bilaterally and on the sidelines of international forums.
Lee will visit Washington June 16 for a summit meeting with Obama.
South Korea's parliamentary committee on foreign affairs and trade has approved
the pact, signaling possible ratification during a plenary session in June.
South Korean Ambassador Han Duck-soo recently said his government has "no
intention of reopening already-concluded agreements," although he said Seoul will
address any stumbling blocks to ratification.
U.S. officials have said they would prefer to address the concerns in side
agreements, without revising the text of the deal itself.
Kirk said Tuesday that he would not set a timeframe for the presentation of the
KORUS FTA, saying "it depends on negotiations."
USTR figures forecast that the KORUS FTA, the biggest for the U.S. since 1993's
North American Free Trade Agreement, would increase annual U.S. exports to South
Korea by more than US$10 billion and increase U.S. gross domestic product by $10
billion to $12 billion annually. Korea is the seventh-biggest trading partner for
the U.S.