Number: RL34528
Title: U.S.-South Korea Beef Dispute: Negotiations and Status
Authors: Remy Jurenas, Resources, Science, and Industry Division; Mark E. Manyin, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division 
Abstract: Many U.S. policy makers view the resumption of all U.S. beef exports to South Korea - the third-largest U.S. beef export market in 2003 - as essential, but not necessarily all that is required, before the U.S. Congress would consider legislation to implement the Korean-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA). To facilitate this, the U.S. and Korean governments agreed in mid-April 2008 on the rules that Korea will apply to U.S. beef imports to ensure that shipments meet Korean human health standards. South Korea's rationale was to improve prospects for the Bush Administration deciding to send the KORUS FTA to Congress before year-end 2008. The White House had for some time signaled that Korea had to reopen its market to U.S. beef - a step necessary to secure the votes of Members of Congress who represent cattle production and beef processing states and whose support for the KORUS FTA is viewed as critical.
Pages: 11
Date: November 25, 2008