US-ROK beef deal removes hurdle to FTA

Seoul and Washington officials Friday reached a last-minute agreement on beef trade, removing the major hurdle for a separate trade pact and opening the door for US beef shipments to Korea, once its third-largest market.
After overnight marathon talks with US officials in Seoul, Korean negotiators agreed to open up the country's beef market to the United States, allowing bone-in beef of any age. In return, Washington agreed to beef up its meat safety by toughening rules on protein-based feed.
The breakthrough came a day before Korean President Lee Myung-bak is set to meet his US counterpart, George W. Bush, during his visit to the United States.
The conservative Lee champions Seoul's close ties with the US and the Korea-U.S. free trade deal, and helped end a long-running beef standoff, observers here said.
Details of the agreement were not disclosed as of yesterday afternoon, but ministry sources said Seoul will lift a ban on bone-in beef over 30 months of age.
Therefore, much sought-after US ribs are expected to be sold in the local market in one or two months at the earliest.
If the deal takes effect, it will be the first time in five years that Seoul allows bone-in beef more than 30 months old.
Seoul banned all U.S. beef imports in December 2003 due to fears of mad cow disease. In January 2006, the Korean government partially lifted the ban, accepting only boneless beef from cattle younger than 30 months old, but suspended imports last year after bone fragments were found in some shipments.
In October, Seoul and Washington started the first round of talks to resume beef trade, but the meetings failed to produce an agreement. The second and latest round of talks started on April 11.
The latest agreement brightens the prospects for the Korea-US free trade agreement. US farm state legislators have said they would not approve the deal unless Korea fully opens up its beef market to the United States.
The trade pact, which was signed last year, required ratification by the respective legislatures of Korea and the United States.
The pact, which will scrap or cut tariffs and other trade barriers in a wide range of industries if approved, will also boost trade between Korea and the United States.
Korea's ruling party, which won a slim majority in the April 18 general elections, is also determined to pass the pact this year despite resistance from the opposition party.
The latest negotiations made little progress before Thursday as the two sides were miles apart on key issues.