Meeting to put Northeast Asia FTA in spotlight next week

Korea, China and Japan will hold their final joint study meeting next week on the feasibility of a free trade agreement between the three Northeast Asian countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said yesterday.

The three-day meeting, the seventh of its kind, will be held in Pyeongchang, Gangwon, from Wednesday, according to the ministry. During the meeting, the three nations will discuss a draft covering commodities trade and other issues, such as service and investment, and seek to draft a final report on the joint study, it added.

In May, leaders from the three nations agreed to conclude the joint study before the end of the year. In May 2010, they launched the project with the aim of concluding it by the end of 2012.

President Lee Myung-bak said earlier that Seoul needs to consider forging an FTA with Beijing to keep up with other nations seeking to expand trade with China.

Yonhap