The proposed South Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (KORUS FTA)
2007
Cooper, William H. | Manyin, Mark E.
Close to midnight on April 1, 2007, President Bush sent a message to the leaders of the House and Senate, notifying them of his intent to enter into a free trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea. The President's notification to Congress signified the completion of the negotiations on the U.S.-South Korea FTA (KORUS FTA) that the two countries launched on February 2, 2006, at South Korea's request. The negotiations covered a wide range of subjects, including a number of sensitive issues -- autos, agriculture, trade remedies, among others -- that have plagued the U.S.-South Korean trading relationship for decades. As a result, the FTA negotiations were at times contentious and their successful completion in doubt. Congress will have to approve implementation legislation for the KORUS FTA before it can enter into force. The negotiations were conducted under the trade promotion authority (TPA), also called fast-track trade authority, that the Congress granted the President under the Bipartisan Trade Promotion Act of 2002 (the Act) (P.L. 107-210). The authority allows the President to enter into trade agreements that receive expedited congressional consideration (no amendments and limited debate). The United States and South Korea conducted the FTA negotiations with a high degree of political risk for both countries, and that risk will likely carry over as their respective legislatures debate the merits of the FTA.
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