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U.S. Deputy Trade Representative Karan Bhatia said Tuesday the substance of the Korea-U.S. free trade negotiations is more important than any deadline. That suggests the U.S. will not push for a conclusion just to meet the expiry of the Trade Promotion Authority, a fast-track authority for FTAs granted to the Bush administration by Congress, which expires in June next year. On the first day of the conference ¡°Korea and the United States 2006¡± jointly sponsored by the Chosun Ilbo and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, Bhatia said the most important principle in conducting free trade talks was that both Korea and the U.S. should be satisfied with their outcome, and that neither Washington nor Seoul will hurry the trade deal or force each other to do so to meet the TPA deadline.
But a leading member of the House International Relations Committee, Dennis Halpin, told the conference there is no chance that Congress will extend the TPA if the trade pact cannot be concluded before it expires. He also expressed concern that if the Democratic Party wins a majority in Congress in mid-term elections next month or comes to have more say in Congress, it could pose a serious problem for ratifying the FTA.
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From left: U.S. Deputy Trade Representative Karan Bhatia, Chosun Ilbo President Bang Sang-hoon and former foreign minister Han Seung-joo
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Experts at the conference predict that if the two countries fail to conclude negotiations before the TPA expires, they will be on ice for a significant period of time.
Bhatia also said nothing that is seen to benefit North Korea can be included in the bilateral FTA, no matter what it is, confirming that Washington is firm on leaving out goods from the joint-Korean Kaesong Industrial Complex in the North. He said the FTA can be compared to a marriage between the South Korean people and their U.S. counterparts and emphasized it has nothing to do with North Korea¡¯s political and economic reforms.
When former foreign minister Han Seung-joo pointed out that the U.S. does recognize products from Israeli industrial complexes in Jordan and Egypt as made-in-Israel, he answered that the two countries are completely different from North Korea in that there is a clear understanding and promises to reform the two Middle Eastern countries¡¯ political systems.
The conference, which celebrates its fourth anniversary this year took place at the Rayburn House Office Building within the U.S. Congress. The two-day meet will tackle the state of the Korea-U.S. alliance on Wednesday.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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