By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
Korea will launch a joint research project with Japan and China in April in a bid to push for a tripartite free trade deal, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Wednesday.
The move comes as the three countries agreed to cooperate on a free trade agreement (FTA) at their summit last October.
"The joint project will be centered on fostering an atmosphere to promote a three-party FTA, and is expected to play a leading role in integrating economies in the Northeast Asian region," a ministry official said.
A report on the plan was presented to a session of the National Assembly committee on foreign affairs, trade and unification later in the day.
Details have yet to be determined but representatives from industrial fields, government offices and academic circles are likely to conduct the research.
Negotiations over a free trade accord between Korea and Japan began in December 2003, but were suspended in 2004 after six rounds of talks.
The two sides failed to narrow differences over specific conditions regarding the manufacturing industry and agricultural markets.
Seoul and Tokyo resumed a working-level meeting last year in a bid to have discussions on FTA negotiations.
The ministry is aiming to complete the joint research project on a free trade pact with Japan and China in the first quarter of this year at the earliest, officials said.
The nation has already inked agreements with Chile, Singapore, India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
A trade pact with the United States was signed in 2007 but still awaits ratification by both countries. U.S. automakers have expressed concerns that the agreement may worsen the imbalance in auto trade between the two countries.
A free trade deal with the European Union was tentatively signed last October.
The foreign ministry plans to have discussions on FTAs with Israel and the Southern Common Market, a trade entity of South American countries.