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In a Feb. 14 statement to the U.S. Senate, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama said he opposes the South Korean-U.S. free trade agreement (KORUS), Korea’s KBS news reported. He added he supports ways to increase bilateral trade and investment ties — agreements that address key U.S. industrial and agricultural sectors — and that he favors protecting labor and environmental standards. KORUS does not meet those standards, Obama said.
South Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong Hoon, speaking live on a KBS radio show Feb. 15, said Obama’s opposition to KORUS could change if Obama were to become the next U.S. president.
KORUS was signed in June 2007, though it awaits ratification by Seoul’s National Assembly and the U.S. Congress. Ambassadors from both nations recently completed a U.S. tour to shore up support for the deal.
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