The Case for Free Trade

enlarge image

Amy Jackson speaking in Seoul on January 19, 2010. (Asia Society Korea Center)

SEOUL, January 19, 2010 - The time for a United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement (or KORUS FTA) is now, argued Amy Jackson, the new president of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) in Korea.

Appearing as the guest speaker at the Asia Society Korea Center's first monthly luncheon of the year, Jackson shared her insights into the KORUS FTA's prospects for approval with Asia Society members. 

Jackson, a former Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Korea, has years of experience in the development and implementation of US trade policy toward Korea, and supported the launch of US-Korea free trade agreement negotiations throughout her tenure. She is also a long-term member of the US-Korea FTA Business Coalition. 

The United States and the Republic of Korea signed the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) in June 2007. If and when it is approved, the Agreement would be the United States' most commercially significant free trade agreement in well over a decade. As of early 2010, the Obama Administration is trying to resolve certain concerns surrounding the KORUS FTA in the US, particularly those that have been raised regarding automotive trade.

Explaining her view that the FTA should be approved as quickly as possible, Jackson pointed to the many comprehensive agreements Korea is negotiating or has already completed with other trading partners, whose products will compete with those from the US. As further justification she cited the increasingly sizable presence Korean industry has in the United States, and the influential role of the Korean American population in supporting the KORUS FTA.