Rival parties agree to handle FTA with U.S. in same pace with U.S. Congress

SEOUL (Yonhap) — Rival parties agreed Thursday to begin the ratification process for the long-pending free trade agreement with the United States at the same pace with the U.S. Congress, officials said.

The last-minute compromise averted a feared clash between the rival parties. Opposition lawmakers had hinted at the possibility of using force to block the bill’s introduction at a parliamentary committee if the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) unilaterally pushed for it.

The trade pact, first signed in 2007 and modified last year, is one of the most contentious issues in parliament. The governing party is calling for an early ratification, while the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) claims the deal favors the U.S. and should be renegotiated.

"We reached a general agreement that we will think about introducing (the bill) when it is brought before the U.S. Congress," said Rep. Yoo Ki-june, the GNP leader on the foreign affairs and trade committee.

Rep. Kim Dong-cheol, the main opposition Democratic Party leader on the committee, also said that the party would not oppose bringing the bill into the parliamentary committee once it is introduced in the U.S. Congress.

Rep. Nam Kyung-pil of the GNP, who chairs the committee, said that the U.S. Congress is expected to introduce the bill around Sept. 20 if the process goes smoothly.

Nam said that the parliament can decide when to act by referring to three points in the U.S. process: the first being when Congress reaches agreement on a timeline, the second being the administration’s decision to submit the bill to Congress and the third being when the bill is actually submitted to Congress.

"I will decide flexibly on which of the three points will be referred to," he said.

The main opposition DP has put forward what it calls a "10 plus two" proposal, which calls for revising 10 items in the trade pact through renegotiations with the U.S. and adding two measures aimed at minimizing the deal’s effect on local industries.

The GNP says the demand for renegotiation with the U.S. is unacceptable.

The ruling party has claimed that the deal should be ratified during the regular parliamentary session in October at the latest and therefore should be introduced at the committee early, as the U.S. is expected to ratify the agreement by October.

But the opposition party has countered that the bill can wait until the U.S. sets a concrete timetable for its ratification.

September 2, 2011

Source: Yonhap News