Foreign Minister
Yu Myung-hwan |
By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan Wednesday tried to dissolve worries about possible losses that U.S. automakers may see after the ratification of a free trade agreement between Seoul and Washington.
``In 2007, Korea exported 670,000 cars to the United States, whereas the U.S. exported 6,500 to Korea. However, out of the 670,000 cars Korea exported, 90,000 were actually automobiles produced by General Motors (GM) in Korea,'' he said in his speech at a meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce in Seoul.
Underlining that foreign-owned automobile manufacturers in Korea including GM Daewoo and Renault Samsung account for a quarter of the country's market share, the minister said the Korean market is fully open to foreign products.
As to the timing of the parliamentary approval of the trade deal, he was cautious to predict but expressed strong hope that the motion will be ratified by early next year.
Yu stressed the importance of the alliance between South Korea and the United States to resolve issues such as the denuclearization of North Korea.
He said that the bilateral alliance would evolve in accordance with changes in various fields.
``Close cooperation with respect to the future architecture of the Korean Peninsula is an issue of growing concern,'' he said. ``We need to work together to create a new peace structure, and to prepare for the reunification of the peninsula further on down the road.''
Noting that the alliance, lasting for more than 50 years, has served as the bulwark for maintaining peace in many areas, the minister said it has not only rendered peace and stability but also served as a ``gateway'' to reach out to the rest of the world.
``Furthermore, our strong alliance has been a crucial factor on which Korea was able to achieve its phenomenal economic development and full-fledged democracy,'' he added.
Yu said the two allies have already embarked on joint efforts to develop the alliance into a so-called ``21st Century Strategic Alliance.''
He also cast a rosy view on coordination with the new U.S. administration, highlighting President-elect Barack Obama's emphasis on the alliance between the two countries.
``In light of the interactions thus far, we gladly note that there is a lot of common ground in our policy objectives on the future of our alliance and on the major issues of common concern,'' he said.
ksy@koreatimes.co.kr
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yistory@koreatimes.co.kr
