By Martin Banks - 8th February 2011
There has been a great deal of scaremongering
Robert Sturdy
Senior MEP Robert Sturdy and Korean officials have welcomed parliament's adoption of the EU's new free trade agreement with South Korea.
Kim Seung-ho, deputy chief of mission at the Korean embassy to the EU, said it was a "win-win" deal for both Korea and the EU while Sturdy said the agreement sent a "clear message that the EU is open for business".
Their comments came after the international trade committee voted on Monday to grant assent to the FTA with Korea.
Approval takes it just one step away from being enacted, with a final vote due next week in Strasbourg. The deal is then expected to be implemented in July.
On Tuesday, Sturdy hosted a joint seminar on the FTA with the European Centre for International Political Economy (ECIPE). Speakers include Roderick Abbott, a former senior commission official and deputy director general of the WTO.
Sturdy, parliament's rapporteur on the agreement, told the meeting the FTA will eliminate 98.7 per cent of duties in trade value for both industry and agriculture within five years.
He said the deal is expected to save the EU agricultural industry €380m, whilst the services sector could expect to see a 70 per cent rise in trade volume.
The agreement also tackles non-tariff barriers to trade and includes specific provisions on electronics, motor vehicles and vehicle parts, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and chemicals.
Sturdy told the hearing, "It has taken quite a while to get the agreement to this stage, but it is reassuring that the committee has now adopted the assent report. I look forward to a strong showing next week.
"The EU needs to send a clear signal, now more than ever, that it is open for business. The swift adoption of this agreement will send out a positive signal that we are not reverting to protectionism in response to the economic environment.
"There have been some genuine concerns about this FTA, and there has been a great deal of scaremongering too. However, with the robust safeguard clause that we have included in the deal, we can be assured that our businesses should only enjoy the immeasurable benefits that this FTA will bring, with limited side effects.
"I hope that the passage of this FTA will enable us to complete other crucial trade agreements with emergent economies, such as India. The EU must not give up on achieving a multilateral deal through the WTO but, in the meantime, we should seek as much bilateral opening of trade as possible."
Seung-ho told this website on Tuesday that fears that the FTA would damage the car industry in Europe, particularly in Germany, had been "exaggerated and "greatly over-stated."
"We understand there was opposition to this in some quarters, but it was not right to allow such an important deal to be take hostage by exaggerated concerns," he said.
"The vote is a step in the right direction and we are pleased with the outcome and we hope that those in Europe will see it that way as well. Hopefully, this vote will be ratified next week."
He said, "The agreement will give improved access to each other's markets for both Korean and European companies. It will be mutually beneficial to both sides, creating jobs and new opportunities."
Abbott told the hearing that non-tariff barriers to trade will be broken down, and the FTA includes specific provisions on electronics, motor vehicles and vehicle parts, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and chemicals.
He said, "In my time with the commission, I helped broker lots of similar deals, but this is particularly important.
"In many ways the two sides are very unequal in terms of population and economies, but this is the start of a new generation of FTAs. I believe it will set the standard for other FTAs in the pipeline."
Under the Lisbon treaty, all international trade deals must be granted assent by parliament.
The committee's vote had been postponed so that MEPs could take into account new Korean CO2 legislation but Sturdy said MEPs were satisfied that it takes into account EU interests.
