|
The top U.S. negotiator in free trade talks with Korea on Monday voiced optimism that the two countries can complete a free trade pact on schedule. Speaking at the start of the sixth round of bilateral FTA talks in Seoul, Wendy Cutler said, "I remain encouraged and optimistic that we can do this under the TPA deadline,¡± referring to fast-track authority for trade deals for the Bush administration that expires in June.
That means the U.S. negotiators have to close the negotiations in March since the team has to submit the deal for a mandatory 90-day review by Congress before it votes on the deal.
But in a press conference at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul, Cutler also demanded a full opening of South Korea's beef market. Highlighting the importance of resuming beef imports after Korea blocked all shipments of U.S. beef following the discovery of bone fragments in them, she warned the issue was "critical" in reaching a deal.
The five-day talks will not touch on several hairy issues, including anti-dumping rules, cars and drugs. The two sides instead agreed to handle issues that are likely to be easy to settle such as textiles, agricultural products and the service industry, while leaving points of contention to separate high-level talks.
Officials in the negotiation team speculate the U.S. is eyeing a ¡°big deal¡± where it accepts the five changes to anti-dumping regulations Korea proposed in the last round in return for a change in Korean car taxation. Washington wants Seoul to tax cars on price rather than engine displacement, a measure that would favor gas-guzzling U.S. cars.
But Cutler made it clear that the U.S. is not budging on Korea's demand to include products from the inter-Korean Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea. "The FTA negotiation focuses only on goods and services from the two nations,¡± she said.
 |
|
Seoul¡¯s chief negotiator Kim Jong-hoon shakes hands with his counterpart Wendy Cutler at the start of the sixth round of free trade negotiations with the U.S. in Seoul on Monday.
|
 |
|
Meanwhile, the Korean negotiating team already flatly declined the U.S. proposal to recognize the qualifications of U.S. Oriental medicine practitioners in Korea. Seoul¡¯s chief negotiator Kim Jong-hoon said the proposal is ¡°impossible due to wide gap in quality and education between Korean Oriental medicine doctors and U.S. practitioners." Out in the streets, Oriental medicine clinics shut up shop and students staged a rally in protest against the U.S. demand. In better news, the two sides are likely to reach agreement on the mutual recognition of architects and technicians.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
|
