U.S. administration officials on Saturday urged Congress to support a free trade agreement (FTA) just signed with South Korea, stressing that it is a good deal and no longer amendable.
South Korea's trade minister, Kim Hyun-chong, and U.S. Trade Representative, Susan Schwab, sealed the deal in a ceremony at the Cannon congressional office building.
Both South Korean and the U.S. legislatures must ratify the agreement before it can be put it into effect.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez said he will cooperate fully with Schwab to muster congressional backing and turn the trade deal into "a reality."
"I will be working closely with her... to ensure that Congress understands how important, how very important this agreement is for our country, to our economy, our people, our workers, for our businesses, for Korea and for the world community," he said to over 200 people gathered to watch the FTA signing.
Schwab said there was a lot of work ahead, that the signing is only a "kick-off to achieve yet another (accomplishment), the approval and implementation of the FTA."
She said she wanted to "educate" the legislators. "I use the word educate rather than convince," she said, "because I firmly believe that as members of both our legislatures come to appreciate the enormous benefits of the agreement, and once the myths our critics have already started to spread are dismantled, the (Korea-U.S.) FTA will attract broad support."
The FTA eliminates about 95 per cent of the tariffs on commodities within three years after it goes into effect.
For the U.S., it is the first FTA with an Asian country and the largest since the North American FTA (NAFTA) of 1994. For South Korea, it is a pact with its second-biggest export market.
Advocates have long argued that the deal would have positive benefits for the two countries, whose alliance dates back to the 1950-1953 Korean War, when the U.S. fought with the South to repel a North Korean attack.
Supporters here have argued that the U.S. needs this FTA to establish a foothold in a region of dynamic growth. South Korea in turn hopes to bolster its international competitiveness.
The FTA signing completes negotiations that took nearly a year, with unexpected last-minute complications. The U.S. sought revisions based on a new trade policy established by the U.S. Congress, now controlled by Democrats after an election last November. Negotiators of the two countries worked out a set of amendments, mostly in the areas of labor and environment, to improve the chances of U.S. congressional approval.
Congress can vote only yes or no on the FTA, without demanding amendments because it was signed before the expiration of the U.S. trade promotion authority.
Unlike in South Korea, where only a legislative endorsement is required, the U.S. administration and Congress need to draw up a set of laws on implementing the FTA. Once these laws are submitted by the president, the Congress must vote within 90 "legislative" days, which means only the days when Congress is in session.
There is no ratification deadline for either country. Stephen Norton, USTR's spokesman, said Washington's legislative approval progress would begin in the fall at the earliest.
The prospects of congressional endorsement, however, remain elusive. On Friday, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other senior Democrat leaders said they cannot support the FTA as negotiated.
"Properly negotiated, a South Korea-U.S. FTA would provide key benefits to American workers, farmers, and businesses," they said.
"Unfortunately, the FTA as currently negotiated is a missed opportunity."
Schwab, however, said there cannot be amendments, as stipulated in the trade promotion authority.
"We know there are some who believe this agreement must be altered," she said, "But I want to affirm that this agreement, once signed, will stand on its own, without amendment."
South Korean and U.S. officials all highlighted the merits of the agreement.
The FTA "takes our 50-year relationship, partnership and friendship to a whole new level," Gutierrez said.
Kim thanked South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun for his unwavering support throughout the negotiations and quoted his words, "Korea cannot stagnate, Korea cannot fall back."
"South Korea and the United States now stand together as economic partners," he said.
Schwab called the FTA a landmark agreement.
"What a great day for international trade," she said.Asia Pulse
