EU-South Korea trade deal 'extremely close'
By Matej Hruska
A landmark free trade agreement (FTA) between the EU and South Korea could be signed on Monday (13 September) if consultations over the weekend smooth away the remaining concerns of Italy, which has blocked the deal up till now.
Belgian foreign minister Steven Vanackere, who chaired Friday's meeting of EU trade ministers on behalf of the Belgian EU presidency, said after the event that the conclusion of negotiations on the agreement is "really close, extremely close."
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"In the time frame that was ours this morning it was not possible to definitely and absolutely confirm that an agreement was possible," he told press, however. He added that his aim is to sign the deal at the EU-Korea summit on 6 October at the latest.
Italy, concerned about the possible effect of the free trade deal on a car-maker Fiat, has called for introduction of a specific safeguard for producers of lower-priced cars. Rome has also demanded the date when the agreement should come into force to be postponed for one year to January 2012, or at least for six months.
"Today we made some big steps forward, we made 80 percent of the work and the new text is considerably improved and accepts most of our demands," the country's deputy minister for economic development Adolfo Urso said.
Italy at a meeting of EU countries' ambassadors in Brussels on Thursday vetoed the proposed deal after other member states declined to agree on the postponement.
"There was a small opening," Italy's ambassador to the EU, Ferdinando Nelli Feroci, said at the time, according to the DPA news agency. "The situation is very complex and we experience strong pressure from other states, the Belgian Presidency and the Commission to conclude the matter quickly."
Rome has also called for an automatic modification of the agreement between the EU and South Korea if the Asian country concludes a more favourable contract with the United States.
EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht said back on Tuesday in the European Parliament that if something changed between the US and South Korea, the shift would apply to Europe as well.