Korea's Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon says the United States has never officially requested a renegotiation of the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement. Kim, attending the Boao Forum for Asia in China, said the need for renegotiation was not even mentioned during the confirmation hearing of new U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk.

Kim added that it is impossible to reopen a deal that has already been signed. Kim said that he expects to see positive results regarding the ratification of the bilateral accord soon.