EU And South Korea To Speed Trade Talks

by Ulrika Lomas, for LawAndTax-News.com, Brussels

20 May 2008

It emerged on Thursday that "significant" progress had been made in free trade negotiations between South Korea and the European Union, with an agreement expected later this year.

Although there have so far been six rounds of negotiations on the proposed FTA, disputes over tariff reductions, rules of origin, and issues related to auto trade have proved to be stumbling blocks, with the EU keen to reach an agreement with terms as advantageous as those of the US-Korea FTA concluded last year.

However, according to the Korean government, progress was made in the areas of rules of origin, non-tariff and so-called geographical indications of some products.

"We have made much progress in the negotiations, and shared the view that a deal could be reached within this year," Lee Hye-min, Seoul's chief negotiator for the talks, announced, according to the KOIS official news service.

"Although there are some contentious issues to be resolved, both sides will continue to try strike a deal at an earlier date through a continued inter-session meeting," he added.

The next round of negotiations in Seoul, but the date for these talks has not yet been agreed.

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