By Ryu Jin
Staff Reporter
South Korea and the United States have agreed on revisions to their free trade agreement (FTA), paving the way for the formal signing in Washington Saturday and increasing the possibility of the accord being endorsed by the U.S. Congress.
The changes include stronger labor and environmental standards as requested by the U.S. administration and Congress, officials in Seoul said.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Seoul agreed with Washington on the final FTA amendments.
``Without agreement to amendments, the U.S. Congress wouldn’t endorse the deal,’’ Han said. ``Practically speaking, the changes are not so burdensome for us.’’
Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong and U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab will sign the deal in Washington at 10 a.m. on June 30.
President George W. Bush is expected to express his support soon for Seoul’s request for the U.S. visa waiver program in return for South Korea’s latest concession in the ``additional negotiations’’ for the trade deal, according to government officials.
Seoul and Washington reached a tentative agreement on April 2 after 10 months of negotiations. But the U.S. requested early this month that some parts of the deal be renegotiated so its new trade policy guidelines could be reflected in the final deal.
The agreement to additional talks set the ground for the two sides to seal the deal before the U.S. President’s authority to fast track such trade agreements expires today. The fast-track authority means Congress must vote on the deal with a simple yes-or-no, without amendments.
Among other changes sought after by Washington in the additional talks with Seoul are in the areas of intellectual property rights and pharmaceuticals. Seoul raised the issues of pharmaceuticals and professional visa quotas as bargaining cards.
Even if the two governments sign the FTA, the pact must be endorsed by the legislative bodies of both countries to take effect. Officials from Seoul and Washington said they hope the deal would be ratified by this autumn.
The agreement to additional talks was greeted by protest rallies. Tens of thousands of unionized workers, farmers and activists took to the streets to oppose the deal.
The rallies came on the heels of a five-day strike by unionized metalworkers across the country. Workers at Hyundai Motor, the country’s top automaker, also joined the industry-wide strike in protest against the free trade deal.
The U.S. is South Korea’s second-biggest export market. Two-way trade topped some $79 billion (73 trillion won) last year.
South Korea and the U.S. agreed to scrap about 95 percent of tariffs on commodities within three years after the deal goes into effect. Rice was excluded from the deal, but farmers argue that the pact will destroy the country’s agricultural industry in the long term.
The government plans to spend more than 130 trillion won ($140.3 billion) through 2013 to compensate for losses to farms and fisheries stemming from the FTA with the U.S., often dubbed the KORUS FTA.