FTA pressure may stoke anti-US sentiment
President Moon Jae-in and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump face a number of geopolitical and economic issues about which the two do not seem to see eye to eye.
Trump is apparently unhappy with the Moon administration’s “soft” approach toward the unruly Kim Jong-un regime.
Dissatisfied with the terms of the free trade agreement (FTA) with Seoul, the Trump administration is calling for South Korea to revise the terms of the deal and open its doors wider to agriculture and fisheries goods.
Trump is also demanding South Korea buy more weapons from the U.S. and take up a greater share of the costs to operate U.S. forces here.
He even threatened a possible U.S. withdrawal from the bilateral free trade deal, unnecessarily undermining rela- tions between the two allies in the face of North Korea’s growing hostility.
These intertwined happenings in the chain of events are not only raising concerns over their strategic partnership, but also the possibility of stoking anti-U.S. sentiment here, observers say.
“These interlinked issues are raising concerns over a number of things, including possible anti-American sentiment, which can definitely affect Korea’s relations with others, and the local market,” said Chung Un-chan, former prime minister and honorary professor at Seoul National University.
“The latest geopolitical power play is teaching us a valuable lesson that we need to start building our strength to steer and seal our own fate. Otherwise, Korea will continue to be swayed by others.”
James Rooney, vice chairman of the Seoul Financial Forum, said the Moon administration should not dance to Trump’s reckless rhetoric, referring to Trump’s recent remarks about canceling the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement.
Rooney, a professor of international finance at Sogang University in Seoul, is also a member of the board of directors of the Korean-American Association.
“If Trump chooses to destroy the KORUS FTA, then ignore it. If he is just making a big noise for the purposes of negotiation, then be gracious and polite and make the small concessions that do not matter much to you,” he said.
He criticized Trump for being ignorant of the true cause of the U.S. trade deficit, noting that the trade deficit Trump complains about is actually caused by a failure of the competitiveness of U.S. companies and products in other countries.
“Successful businesses do not win or lose because of tariffs or FTAs — instead the successful ones are win- ners because they have great products that people want and will go out of their way to buy, as long as the company makes the effort to bring themselves to the customer’s market intelligently and with proper and thorough local understanding.”
For its part, the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM Korea) also recently opposed the termination of the trade deal, saying it would hurt both economies.
“We are also concerned about the deterioration of the relationship between the U.S. and Korea, leading to anti-American sentiment,” it said in a statement.
“The growth of American businesses operating in Korea will be negatively influenced.”
Farmers here are expected to be in a rage should Korean negotiators concede to the U.S. demand to eliminate tariffs on American agricultural goods.