Resumption of FTA Talks
Korean Trade Minister Yoon Sang-jick met his counterparts of Canada and New Zealand each on December 3 to accelerate talks for a free trade agreement (FTA).
The Korean trade ministry said on December 4 that Minister Yoon and Canadian Minister Ed Fast met earlier in the day in Bali, Indonesia, where the ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization has been under way since December 3.
“The two trade ministers have agreed to work for the early conclusion of a bilateral FTA,” the Korean trade ministry said on December 4, adding, “The two ministers noted that there had been significant progress in negotiations for the Korea-Canada FTA.”
Korea and Canada resumed their FTA negotiations last week, five years after the previous round in March 2008, largely due to two sides’ differing opinions on the level of market liberalization.
The two sides also discussed Seoul’s possible participation in ongoing negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a US-led regional trade pact.
Minister Yoon also met New Zealand Trade Minister Tim Groser in Bali and made an agreement with him to resume Korea-New Zealand FTA talks in February of next year.
Talks for a FTA between Korea and New Zealand have been halted for three years and nine months, since the first FTA talks in June 2009.