By Michael Ha
Staff Reporter

Opposition voices are getting louder over the pending Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement deal, and they are being heard not just in Korea but also in the United States.

In Korea, the governing Grand National Party (GNP) has, over the weekend, called for the convening of an extraordinary National Assembly session in an attempt to ratify the trade deal.

But the FTA ratification looks increasingly unlikely since opposition parties are insisting that the trade deal must include a renegotiation of the U.S. beef import agreement.

The governing party has also asked National Assembly speaker Lim Chae-jung to invoke his power to introduce a motion to ratify the deal but that request has also been rejected.

The move to ratify the deal now looks likely to be delayed until after the GNP-controlled 18th National Assembly is inaugurated next month.

In the new 299-member legislature, the GNP controls 153 seats, while the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) has 81 seats.

Meanwhile, Americans opposing the trade deal gained a powerful ally; last Friday, leading U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama came out criticizing the deal, calling it ``badly flawed.''

Obama said he has urged U.S. President George W. Bush not to submit the FTA to a congressional vote. He said the deal needs to be renegotiated.

In a letter addressed to President Bush, Obama claimed the provisions on automobiles give South Korean carmakers ``essentially unfettered access to the U.S. market and would eliminate our best opportunity for obtaining genuinely reciprocal market access in one of the world's largest economies.''

``Like many members of Congress, I oppose the U.S.-Korea FTA, which I believe is badly flawed. In particular, the terms of the agreement fall well short of assuring effective, enforceable market access for American exports of manufactured goods and many agricultural products,'' he said.

Obama said in the letter: ``Instead of provoking unnecessary and potentially corrosive confrontation over this agreement, your administration could make a significant contribution towards re-establishing trust with Congress and restoring bipartisan cooperation on trade by withholding the agreement.''

However, President Bush is continuing to make efforts to ratify the KORUS FTA, asking the Democrat-controlled Congress to pass the deal.

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