- Negotiations
The governments of China, South Korea and Japan are expected to commence negotiations on an eventual trilateral free trade agreement between the three countries during 2012 by first concluding bilateral agreements.
In December 2011, the three countries held a final joint study meeting on the feasibility of an FTA among them.
In January 2012, the South Korean and Chinese presidents announced that they would move towards negotiating a bilateral agreement between the two countries. In March 2012, the three countries concluded an investment agreement among themselves which is viewed as a step towards a more comprehensive FTA. In May 2012, China and Korea held their first round of negotiations towards an FTA in Beijing.
Negotiations on a Japan-Korea bilateral FTA, which stalled in 2004, despite several attempts to revive them, have to contend with unresolved tensions stemming from the Japanese occupation of Korea in the first half of the 20th century and Japanese resistance to lowering tariffs on agricultural imports. Any eventual FTA between China, South Korea and Japan needs to be seen in the context of ongoing economic and political rivalry between China and the USA, as Washington pursues plans to create a new regional free trade and investment agreement by joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
last update: May 2012
Photo: KOREA.NET - Official page of the Republic of Korea / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
22-Aug-2010
Asahi Shimbun
The Japanese government needs to take steps to make an FTA more attractive to Korean industries, says the Asahi Shimbun
5-Aug-2010
NYT
South Korea’s ambassador to China said in an interview published Thursday that his nation was likely to open free trade talks with Beijing next year. The negotiations could be a first step toward a three-nation trade zone including Japan, which would rival the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement in size.
23-Jun-2010
Chosun Ilbo
The two governments will start preliminary talks on sensitive items such as agriculture and automobiles in September
31-May-2010
AFP
South Korea, Japan and China agreed Sunday to speed up an investment accord and research on a trilateral free trade pact.
24-May-2010
Dow
Trade ministers of South Korea, China and Japan are targeting to conclude an investment agreement among the three countries this year in order to promote tripartite economic and trade cooperation, Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Sunday.
23-Apr-2010
A Korea-China free trade agreement will be a definite plus for the country at least statistically. The governing camp must risk in losing votes from angry farmers, fishermen and small-and medium-sized manufacturing companies.
13-Apr-2010
Asahi Shimbun
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has recently said that there are three key policy issues in the area of diplomacy that he intends to tackle while he is in office. One of them is signing a free trade agreement with South Korea.
26-Feb-2010
Korea Herald
The government said yesterday Korea would take the initiative in discussions on integrating the East Asian economies and push for a trilateral free trade agreement between Korea, China and Japan.
25-Feb-2010
The government said yesterday Korea will take the initiative in discussions on integrating East Asian economies and push for a trilateral free trade agreement between Korea, China and Japan.
26-Jan-2010
Xinhua
A trilateral meeting among three Northeast Asian countries is slated for Tuesday in Seoul as the three countries seek to launch a joint research on a free trade pact, Seoul’s trade ministry said Monday.
