By Kim Yon-se Staff Reporter The two largest parties agreed Tuesday to handle the provisional free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the United States at a National Assembly committee session on Feb. 11, said Ahn Sang-soo, floor leader of the main opposition Grand National Party. But going against President-elect Lee Myung-bak's wish, lawmakers of the pro-government United New Democratic Party (UNDP) are looking to vote on the bill after the April 9 general elections, UNDP sources said. Ahead of a probable March summit with U.S President George W. Bush, Lee is poised to make every effort to fully open the domestic market to U.S. beef. Lee, who will take office on Feb. 25, has reiterated that his transition team will resolve the problematic beef import issue ``in February.'' The President-elect's pledge means that Seoul is ready to remove ``hurdles'' for fast parliamentary ratification and effectuation of the FTA with Washington. Lee has insisted that there are more urgent issues in relations with the U.S., expressing his willingness to settle the lingering import issue as early as possible. But the beef import could not merely be a commercial issue for Koreans who eat about 85 parts of cattle, while only about 10 parts are regarded edible for Americans. Cattle's intestines, spinal cords and backbones _ consumed by many Koreans _ are three of the few parts which might contain high ratio of specified risk materials (SRM), a main factor for mad cow disease. Though Lee and his transition committee stress the necessity of allowing imports of ``bone-containing'' beef for fast ratification of the FTA by the U.S. Congress, they hesitated to mention food safety. Cheon Ho-seon, the spokesman of incumbent President Roh Moo-hyun, has also refused to answer whether the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry regards U.S. beef as safe to eat. The Lawyers for a Democratic Society is accusing the presidential office and the transition committee of not making public confidential documents or verbal reports by the Ministry of Agriculture, which is assumed to stipulate risk amid problematic sanitary conditions of U.S. meat processors. Some Korean experts worry that Congress will veto the Korea-U.S. FTA and urged the National Assembly to press Congress by passing the motion as early as possible (in February) and calling for the government to further ease beef quarantine rules. But some say earlier ratification ahead of the U.S. is absurd. ``Even under a case of Congress' vetoing the FTA bill, the U.S. will eventually gain four prerequisites _ beef, automobiles, pharmaceuticals and the screen quota,'' said Lee Hae-young, a professor of international relations at Hanshin University. He also mentioned the possibility that Congress will demand renegotiations on the already concluded accord even after parliamentary ratification in Korea. In contrast, Prof. Cheong In-kyo of Inha University downplayed the possibility of renegotiations, saying, ``The U.S. would not do that as it knows too well about possible adverse sentiment.'' Prof. Lee cited a case in which the U.S. revised the FTA accord with Peru via renegotiation after Peruvian lawmakers passed the bill first. kys@koreatimes.co.kr