According to Yonhap News,

(WASHINGTON=Yonhap News) Trade specialists in the United States praised the free trade agreement (FTA) between Korea and the United States as a driving force for the latter’s trade diplomacy and a base for bilateral economic relations.

The Korea Economic Institute of America held a forum on May 18 with a theme related to the future of free trade in East Asia.

“The Korea-U.S. FTA is one of the two driving forces that helped American trade diplomacy,” said Mireya Solís, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

“The other one is the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership (TPP). The FTA between Korea and the United States has been exemplary for us to conclude the TPP free trade deals with other Asian countries, “said Solís.

“No agreement could be any better than the Korea-U.S. FTA. It has laid the foundation for building multi-dimensional economic cooperation between the two countries,” said James Fatheree, executive vice president of the U.S.-Korea Business Council.

The bilateral FTA went into effect in March, 2012.

“The Korea-U.S. FTA is a success case for exporting American products to overseas markets and creating domestic jobs,” said United States Trade Representative Michael Froman in a statement.

“With regards to Korea’s interest in joining the TPP, it should consider participating in the trade deal right after we conclude the current negotiations by the end of 2015,” said Edward Alden, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

“Korea’s participation in the TPP will not only renew its existing trade deals with TPP-participating countries, but it will also help Korea gain a competitive edge when establishing mutual market access with Japan," said Solís.

"We have yet to maximize the use of the FTA. We need at least two to three more years to effectively benefit from the agreement," said Lee Il Houng, President of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy.

smile@yna.co.kr

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Source Text

Source: Yonhap News (May 19, 2015)

** This article was translated from the Korean.