S. Korea to Hold Talks with Japan on Joining CPTPP

Seoul, Sept. 20 (Jiji Press)–South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has said that his country plans to engage in talks with Japan on possibly joining the Tokyo-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. At a press conference with foreign media in Seoul on Friday, Cho said that South Korea does not consider the scrapping of its import ban on fishery goods from eight Japanese prefectures to be a precondition for joining the multilateral free trade pact. The import restrictions will not be lifted until the concerns of the South Korean people are wiped out, he said. Seoul barred fishery imports from Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures in northeastern Japan, and Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki and Chiba prefectures in eastern Japan, following the March 2011 severe accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s tsunami-stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. The Japanese government has said the fishery products are safe, calling on South Korea to remove the restrictions swiftly. The import ban could become a key issue in negotiations on South Korea’s possible participation in the CPTPP. The administration of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung announced on Sept. 3 that it will consider joining the pact, which would require the consent of all 12 member states including Japan, Australia and Britain. Whether South Korea can join the CPTPP is expected to be in the hands of Japan. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]