South Korea’s U.N. ambassador urges U.S. to pass free-trade agreement during Baker Institute speech

South Korea’s U.N. ambassador urges U.S. to pass free-trade agreement during Baker Institute speech

BY FRANZ BROTZEN
Rice News Staff

Hyun Chong Kim, South Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations, called for passage of the free-trade agreement between his country and the United States during a Jan. 31 lecture at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy.

AKIL BENNETT

Hyun Chong Kim, South Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations, called for passage of the free-trade agreement between his country and the United States during a Jan. 31 lecture at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy.

“This free-trade agreement is not only an important symbol of the ongoing friendship between the countries, but it’s also our most significant bilateral agreement since the mutual defense treaty, which established our alliance in 1954,” Kim said.

The pact was signed June 30, 2007, but awaits formal passage in both the South Korean and U.S. legislatures.

An ardent supporter of an open trading system, Kim served as minister for trade in the Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade from 2004 to 2007. He cited South Korea’s dramatic growth in recent years — from a recipient of aid from countries like Cambodia and the Philippines to the 12th largest economy in the world with a per capita income above $18,000 per year — development he credited to free trade.

The treaty under discussion would cover goods and services, guarantee intellectual property rights, align labor and environmental laws, eliminate virtually all barriers to trade and investment and end tariffs between the United States and the Republic of Korea, Kim said. But the real effects won’t be limited to economics, he argued. Those effects would reach into the military, political and security fields.

Kim asserted one of the most pressing reasons for the treaty’s approval is the prospect of Korean reunification, which he said is likely to take place in the not-too-distant future. Economic growth inside North Korea, spurred by South Korean investment, will hasten the collapse of the communist government. Meanwhile, an increasingly wealthy South Korea, fueled by free trade, will be better able to assume the financial burdens that will inevitably come with that collapse.

“For the past half century, the security guaranteed by our alliance has not only been a linchpin for peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and northeast Asia, but also a catalyst for Korea’s political and economic development,” Kim said. The proposed treaty would further enhance the region’s economic and political stability, he concluded.

The lecture was co-sponsored by Rice President David Leebron and the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Center for Asian Studies.