Korea’s chief FTA negotiator said US Trade Representative Susan Schwab told him the United States would soon ask Seoul to renegotiate the recently hammered-out bilateral free trade agreement. [Yonhap News, English]. Not cool. Not cool at all.
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12 Comments
A deal is a deal. If the U.S. wanted a better deal, should have done it the first time around.
While it would have been preferable for the US to hang tough from the beginning, my dominant reaction to its now giving Korea a taste of its own kimchi is pronounced schadenfreude for our gracious hosts.
“While it would have been preferable for the US to hang tough from the beginning, my dominant reaction to its now giving Korea a taste of its own kimchi is pronounced schadenfreude for our gracious hosts.”
I know where you’re coming from - and agree to some extent - but a deal is a deal, is it not?
You mean like the base relocation and command transfer deals? I’m with Sperwer on this one.
Yeah, if both sides are playing by the same rules, but Korea never does. Moreover, it ain’t a deal until the fat lady sings, and in this case the score hasn’t even been signed off, let alone passed to Congress (or the Korean National Assembly, for that matter) for the recital; so there isn’t a deal yet, just the respective technicians’ and lower-on-the-political-food- chain carnivores’ respective recommendations of a deal to their respective superiors.
But, hey, I’d be happy to have this go to Congress right now for an up or down vote, because I’m confident it would crash and burn - which would be an even more important message to send to Korea Inc.
Didn’t Korea renege on some of its FTA commitments with Chile after both countries ratified it? Agricultural goods I recall.
With the USTR requesting additional negotiations it appears the current incarnation of the FTA won’t get through the Senate.
“A deal is a deal. If the U.S. wanted a better deal, should have done it the first time around.”
Whatever, the US government constantly screws with the Canada-US FTA. At least this time around, they want to pretend like they care by negotiating before changing the rules as it pleases them.
Canada? Er, ‘whatever.’
What Sperwer said…
There is no deal and there will continue to be no deal until both sign off on it (which I don’t foresee coming in the near future at all).
As for the Canada thing, I can only assume that you are talking about the most publicized softwood lumber dispute…Pricing differences, both sides have points, both sides won some judgments blah blah…not as cut and dry as most make it out to be (I’m Canadian).
Other than that, no examples - no point.
“Canada? Er, ‘whatever.”
Your largest trading partner. Whatever indeed.
When I lived in that miserable little dump, every single Korean I ever dealt with changed a contract several times after it was signed. Every single one.
The Koreans can learn to deal with being treated how they treat others.
No, not cool at all. It was obvious this is out of fear that this will not get the senates approval. However this will not be obvious to the average korean, nor will it be portrayed as such by the Korean media who will spin it as more reasons to hiss and boo the US.
Instead Bush should let it be bitch slapped up and down the senate floor and finished off in no uncertain terms just to let em know “how we really feel”. Then and only then would it be proper to ask for the renegotiation.
…and admitedly I’d like to see the confused look on everyones faces here when the imperialist devil won’t even ratify its own lop-sided treaty.
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[...] The Marmot and Richardson disapprove, believing that we had a deal and should stick to it. Many of Robert’s commenters argue that because Korea habitually fails to keep its own agreements, that this will be a highly satisfying teaching point. As to the latter point, it doesn’t quite manage to persuade me. The second of two wrongs may put a smile on your face, but it still doesn’t make a right. This is not to deny that I’m also smiling, because I think Schwab’s people signed a bad deal. [...]