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US-Korea

The US-Korea free trade agreement (or KORUS FTA, as called in Korea) has been one of the most controversial since NAFTA, if one could measure in terms of social mobilisation. Millions of people have fought against this deal, taking to the streets and flying across the Pacific to try to defeat it.

Washington and Seoul talked about a possible free trade agreement for several years before anything got started. As it turns out, the US had four preliminary demands for the Korean government to fulfil before any FTA talks could start. The four prerequisites were:

 suspending regulations on pharmaceutical product prices so US drug firms could get a better deal in the Korean market (secured in October 2005)
 easing government regulations on gas emissions in imported US cars so that more American cars could be sold in Korea (secured in November 2005)
 resuming importation of US beef, which were stopped in 2003 because of mad cow disease in the US (agreed in January 2006) and
 reducing South Korea’s compulsory film quota for cinemas from 146 days per year to 73 days so that more American films could be shown (agreed in January 2006).

Once the Roh administration caved in to the last item, the two governments announced, on 2 February 2006, that FTA talks would start in May 2006 and end by June 2007.

The implications of the US-Korea FTA stretch far beyond Korean movie houses as the agreement would open the entire Korean economy to US corporate penetration. Korean farmers and workers organised a strenuous resistance to the deal, with support from actors, students, health professionals, consumers groups, environmental organisation, veterinarians, lawyers and other sectors. Alliances were also built with opponents to the deal in the US, including AFL-CIO, the country’s largest labour union.

The first round of negotiations took place in the US on 5-9 June 2006. Ten months and eight formal rounds (not to mention numerous side talks on side agreements) later, the deal was concluded on 2 April 2007 in Seoul, just hours after a Korean taxi driver commited self-immolation in protest to the signing.

This was not the end, however. Two weeks later, newly elected Korean President Lee Myung-Bak travelled to Washington to sign the FTA. While there, on 18 April, the two governments inked yet another side deal that the US insisted was necessary for the FTA to go through. This deal laid out explicit rules on how Korea was to open its market in the broadest way to US beef imports, despite concerns about mad cow disease. The adoption of this secret pact triggered off what became known as the "beef crisis" in Korea. Students, mothers and consumers raised a fury of candlelight protests and other actions that by June 2008 had ministers resigning and the president own tenure under threat.

After several more years of sustained opposition to the agreement, the US-Korea FTA was finally ratification by both countries’ parliaments and took effect in November 2011 However opposition to, and concerns about the FTA have not faded since it passed, with many worried about the implications of the investor-state dispute mechanism in the deal.

last update: May 2012

Photo: Joe Mabel / CC BY-SA 3.0


Gov’t urges anti-FTA protestors to stay home
The South Korean government on Friday urged a group of some 100 Koreans to refrain from staging a protest in Washington against the first round of negotiations for a free trade agreement with the US, to be held there on June 5-9.
Experts warn of inflated hopes for Korea-US FTA
A free trade agreement between Korea and the US is expected to bring substantial challenges as well as opportunities for the Korean economy. The manufacturing industry led by textiles, cars and electronics will see exports increase, but agricultural, fisheries and the service industry will at the very least have undertake structural reforms to survive.
S Korean farm sector to suffer huge damage from US FTA: report
A free trade pact with the United States would deal a hard blow to South Korea’s agricultural sector and cause estimated losses of up to 8.8 trillion won (US$9.39 billion), a Korea University report showed Wednesday.
Korea completes draft for FTA with US
Reducing or scrapping the 40 percent tariff on beef imports will be on the agenda at FTA negotiations with the US scheduled to start on June 5, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Monday, under first drafts Korea and the US have completed.
Honest approach required in Korea-U.S. FTA negotiation
I read an article by Woo Seok-gyun, an official from the Korea Federation of Medical Groups for Health Rights (KFHR), regarding the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiation on medical care and education. Mr. Woo described the upcoming negotiation as a ’game of truth’ by the government.
S Korean actors to protest FTA with US in Cannes
A group of South Korean movie workers left for France Monday to protest at the Cannes film festival against South Korea’s plan to sign a free trade pact with the United States, representatives of the group said.
Korea, US FTA no longer an option
A free trade agreement with the United States has sparked a heated debate in Korea. The two major labor unions and the nation’s largest environmental group have jointly launched a nationwide campaign against a Korea-US FTA. There are also plenty of pro-FTA supporters.
US FTA: A good opportunity to upgrade Korean economy
Korea and the US officially announced the start of negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) three months ago. The two sides are set to begin negotiations this June after gathering opinions from various fields of society.
RI envisions free trade among D-8 member countries
After breaking the ice by launching the preferential trade agreement among Developing Eight (D-8) countries, Indonesian Trade Minister Mari E. Pangestu envisions that the agreement would lead to a free trade arrangement for member countries in less than 15 years.
Imports of rice at issue in US trade negotiations with Korea
Rice, the staple food for much of Asia, will doubtless be a tough issue in negotiations on a US-South Korea free-trade agreement (FTA) and could be an issue in US-Malaysia FTA talks, US experts say.

    Links


  • AMCHAM Korea
    The American Chamber of Commerce in Korea
  • Ben Muse - KORUS FTA
    A blog with a large number of links and references to the US-Korea FTA talks and analyses about them.
  • KAWAN
    Korean Americans Against War and Neoliberalism
  • Korea Policy Institute
    The US-based Korea Policy Institute produces policy briefs, organizes Congressional press briefings and sponsors policy roundtable on the proposed US-South Korea Free Trade Agreement.
  • Korean Civil Society Coalition against KORUS FTA on Intellectual Property Rigthts
    Korean Civil Society Coalition against KORUS FTA on Intellectual Property Rigthts (KCSC) is deeply worried about the Korea-US FTA negotiations especially on the issue of IPRs such as copyright, patent and trademark and strongly opposes the whole process of Korea-US FTA negotiations.
  • US-Korea FTA Business Council
    The US-Korea FTA Business Coalition is a group of over 100 leading US companies and trade associations that strongly support the conclusion and passage of a free trade agreement between the United States and the Republic of Korea.
  • VoiceofPeople
    The VoiceofPeople is a progressive internet press outfit in Korea covering the FTA struggle.