By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
Capitol Hill will not ratify the Korea-U.S. trade pact without the reopening of Seoul's beef market, chief U.S. negotiator Wendy Cutler affirmed Tuesday on her first visit to Korea since the deal was reached in April.
``Congress made it clear that it is necessary to reopen the beef market in order to consider the free trade agreement (FTA). The sooner we resolve this issue, the faster the ratification,'' said the assistant United States trade representative (USTR) in a meeting with the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM) members.
She explained that easing the beef issue will satisfy the businessmen in the agricultural industry, consequently leading the congressional leaders, who have close ties with them, to change their minds toward approval.
After sealing the deal this summer, both Seoul and Washington await congressional and National Assembly ratification.
``Let's not fixate on who goes first because the agreement only goes into effect when both sides ratify,'' she stressed, estimating that the approval process will be over in the U.S. by the early half of next year.
Earlier this year, Korea resumed importing boneless U.S. meet from cattle less than 30 months old, putting a temporary stop to an almost three-year ban pushed by concerns of mad cow disease.
However, repeated discoveries of bone fragments have triggered local officials to suspend beef imports earlier this month.
Washington demands Seoul fully open its beef market, while Seoul remains stiff on keeping quarantine regulations.
To work around the sticky issue, officials from both sides started talks last week to discuss expanding sanitary standards for rib imports, but the meeting ended with no agreement.
``The trade deal is significant to the U.S. and will bring economic, political and strategic benefits to both sides,'' Cutler said, citing that Seoul is Washington's seventh largest trading partner with two-way trade amounting to $78 billion last year.
She called on business communities of both countries to lay out the specific benefits in order to convince a speedy ratification process.
Comparing the currently staggered FTA situation to the old Korean saying, Cutler said with confidence, ``A building built with a lot of effort will not fall. In the end, I believe that the agreement will be approved.''