041113 U.S. Pressures S. Korea On Import Ban

Seoul, South Korea - Discussions on an early resumption of U.S. beef imports, which have been prohibited in South Korea since late last year for sanitary reasons, will top the agenda of next week's bilateral trade talks, an official at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul said.

The U.S. embassy economic official, who said on condition of anonymity, also stressed that the beef issue will not be discussed in conjunction with the on-going rice talks with South Korea, which is hoping to expand its rights to limit rice imports. "We are now approaching a year on this issue," the official said.

"We are looking now to Korea to be fairly rapid in studying the measures that the U.S. food safety experts have taken to deal with the situation and reach the same conclusion that we have which is that U.S. beef is safe for consumption."

The next round of quarterly Korea-U.S. trade talks are scheduled for week in Seoul.

South Korea imposed an import ban on U.S. beef after the U.S. discovered its first case of mad cow disease on a Washington state farm in December.

South Korea was the third-largest importer of U.S. beef after Japan and Mexico. However, the U.S. will not link the beef issue with the rice talks as many South Koreans fear, the official said.

"There is physical impossibility (to link the two issues)," the official said. "There are 10 countries, including South Korea, participating in the rice talks and you just can't do it."

South Korea has held a series of bilateral talks with nine rice-exporting countries, including the United States, on an extension of its right to limit rice imports.

Under the 1994 agreement at the Uruguay Round talks, South Korea was granted the right to limit rice imports to 4 per cent of total domestic consumption. Since then, the country has gradually increased rice imports to about 200,000 tons a year.

However, with the expiration of the multilateral trade pact this year, South Korea is required to decide either to raise its import quota or adopt a tariff system before the end of the year if it fails to extend its rights through individual negotiations with its trading partners.

Local observers have raised concerns that Washington may try to seek a tradeoff with Seoul in agricultural trade by pressuring South Korea to drop its ban on American beef imports in exchange for U.S. cooperation in the rice talks.

"We have made some progress (in the rice talks) and are getting closer to coming to an agreement," the official said.

The official noted it is too soon for the two countries to discuss a bilateral free trade agreement as the U.S. "needs to see additional concrete accomplishments" in other trade issues first.

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