US Security Council ’wants FTA with Korea ratified’

Chosun Ilbo | 20 April 2009

U.S. Security Council ’Wants FTA with Korea Ratified’

Officials at the U.S. National Security Council want to see the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement ratified by Congress this fall, a report claims.

Inside U.S. Trade, an American magazine, last Saturday quoted sources as saying NSC officials believe that the passage of the FTA bill will cement the Korea-U.S. alliance at a time when tension is mounting on the Korean Peninsula in the wake of North Korea’s launch of a long-range rocket.

Their views could influence U.S. President Barack Obama’s decision, although the NSC does not deal directly with trade.

The magazine also said that prior to President Lee Myung-bak’s scheduled visit to the U.S. on June 16, working-level officials from the two countries will meet in May to review things to make sure that there is progress in the FTA ratification.

Concerning the automobile trade, the main stumbling block to the passage of the FTA, the magazine speculated that the two countries can reach clear decisions only after June 1, when the U.S. government will decide whether to bail out General Motors and Chrysler.

source : Chosun Ilbo

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