U.S. might consider Kaesong goods to be South Korean: Vershbow
Yonhap
2/5/2007
The United States may recognize goods produced at a joint industrial complex just north of the border as South Korean if there is a change in circumstances, the top U.S. diplomat here said Monday.
In a one-hour meeting with Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung, U.S. Ambassador Alexander Vershbow said that while it is unrealistic to recognize the goods made in the border city of Kaesong as South Korean, there is room left to negotiate within the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries, Unification Ministry officials said.
“Lee stressed that U.S. recognition of the goods produced in Kaesong as South Korean will contribute to bringing about a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula. Vershbow said ‘if,’ but he did not elaborate on what kind of change under what kind of circumstances,” said a ministry official who was present at the meeting, but who asked to remain anonymous.
So far, the U.S. has avoided placing the issue on the official agenda of the FTA negotiations, so Vershbow’s remarks could be construed as a slight change in U.S. strategy toward forging a free trade deal with South Korea.
In spite of United Nations sanctions on the North following its nuclear weapon test in October, South Korea has kept two major cross-border joint projects afloat: an industrial complex in Kaesong just north of the border, and a tourism program at the North’s scenic Mount Geumgang.
In the industrial complex, South Korean businesses use cheap North Korean labor to produce goods. Twenty-one South Korean factories employ about 11,160 North Korean workers in Kaesong.
The six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, involving the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, will reconvene in Beijing on Thursday.
US May Accept Kaesong Goods
Korea Times
Ryu Jin
2/5/2007
The United States might recognize goods made at a joint industrial complex in the North Korean border city of Kaesong as South Korean products in a proposed free trade agreement (FTA) if there is a change in circumstances, the top U.S. diplomat in Seoul said Monday.
U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Alexander Vershbow said in a meeting with Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung that, although it seems unrealistic at the moment to recognize the Kaesong products as South Korean, there is room left to negotiate within the proposed FTA.
“Lee stressed that U.S. recognition of the goods produced in Kaesong as South Korean will contribute to bringing about a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula,” a ministry official said after the meeting. “Ambassador Vershbow said `if,’ but he did not elaborate on what kind of change under what kind of circumstances.”
Vershbow’s remarks could be interpreted as a sign of change in U.S. strategy since Washington has so far refused to deal with the issue as an official agenda item in the ongoing negotiations for a South Korea-U.S. FTA.
Inter-Korean ties have soured in recent years in tandem with the deteriorating North Korea nuclear standoff. But the six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea’s nuclear program is expected to see a substantial progress in the coming round of negotiations.
South Korea has kept afloat its major cross-border projects with North Korea, including the joint industrial park in Kaesong and a tourism program at the North’s scenic Mt. Kumgang, even after Pyongyang’s nuclear test in October.
South Korea has exerted much effort to have its counterparts in FTAs, such as Southeast Asian countries, recognize the Kaesong products as “made in Korea” because it has a significance to further promote the joint industrial project.
A total of 21 South Korean factories are operating in the Kaesong industrial park at present, employing over 10,000 North Korean workers.
