Full text of joint declaration on start of Korea-EU free trade talks
Trade minister of the Republic of Korea Kim Hyun-chong and the European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson, meeting in Seoul on May 6, agreed to the launch of negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA). The Ministers agreed to aim at a new generation WTO compatible FTA that would extend beyond present agreements and build towards future multilateral negotiations. The ministers agreed that bilateral liberalization of goods and services would contribute to the strengthening of the multilateral trading system and promised to cooperate in promoting an early and successful conclusion of the Doha Development Agenda.
The ministers said that a comprehensive and high-level FTA that is consistent with WTO rules and principles would open new markets and expand opportunities for Korean and EU businesses while giving valuable momentum to liberalization of global trade. They also noted that the EU is Korea's second largest trading partner and Korea is the fourth largest non-European trading partner for the EU.
Emphasizing the need for rapid progress in the FTA negotiations so as to allow for its timely conclusion, the ministers promised to achieve significant progress over the scheduled rounds comprehensively covering areas that include tariff and non-tariff aspects of trade in goods, services and investment, and regulatory issues, such as intellectual property rights, government procurement and competition.
The ministers reaffirmed their strong commitment to the primacy of the multilateral trading system and reconfirmed that the bilateral liberalization of trade and investment through new generation FTAs would contribute to the strengthening of the multilateral trade system.
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