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Washington, DC, United States (AHN) – The Free Trade Agreement between the United States and South Korea would not only help boost exports, but would create thousands of jobs in the country, a top Obama Administration trade official told lawmakers on Thursday.

“The US-Korea trade agreement will strengthen our trade and investment ties to Korea’s $1 trillion economy,” the Deputy US Trade Representative, Demetrios Marantis, said at a Congressional hearing on US-Korea FTA.

“It will bind a key ally closer to us, anchor our economy to the dynamic Asia Pacific region and help us keep our edge over international competition. Most importantly, this agreement will create substantial export opportunities, establish strong enforcement provisions and support tens of thousands of new export-oriented jobs,” he said.

Marantis said the Korea agreement is just a first example of how this administration has worked to make the trade agreements better. “The President has underscored his intention to present pending trade agreements to Congress once we have adequately addressed key outstanding concerns. In December, we did so with Korea,” he said.

The USTR official told the House Ways and Means Committee that the Obama Administration negotiated with Koreans for a successful trade agreement.

“We leveled the playing field by addressing key non-tariff barriers in Korea’s auto safety and environmental regulations. We encouraged green technologies by immediately cutting in half Korea’s tariffs on electric cars and eliminating these tariffs within five years,” he said.

“We negotiated a tariff structure that will give American auto companies and their workers a chance to build more business in Korea before U.S. tariffs come down, and we negotiated a new special motor vehicle safeguard,” Marantis said.

Responding to questions from Committee Chairman Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Tx), on his concerns about America’s textile industry, Marantis said 75 percent of US textile and apparel exports to Korea would receive duty-free treatment immediately upon implementation of the agreement. “That’s really important because Korea is becoming a larger destination for U.S. textile and apparel exports,” he said.

“We have a special textile safeguard in the agreement that allows us to address instances when increased imports may cause serious damage to the industry producing like or directly competitive products,” he argued.

Marantis said Korea is a critical strategic ally of the United States. “What we’re doing as part of the free trade agreement is helping to bolster the economic pillar of the US strategic relationship. A strong, prosperous South Korea is very much in the strategic interests of the United States, which is why negotiation, conclusion and ratification and entry into force of this agreement, is a win-win for both of us,” he said.

“It’s good for both the South Korean economy and the US economy, and as a result, it’s a good tool to help bolster a very important ally,” the official said. “As soon as the agreement goes into force, we begin to eliminate the 40 percent tariff on beef,” Marantis said in response to a question.

Marantis argued this agreement provides the highest level of labor and environmental protection that the US has had in the history of trade agreements, as does Colombia and Panama as well. “This agreement requires both parties to adopt and maintain laws that are consistent with the five core ILO labor standards. It requires the parties to effectively enforce those laws as well as laws that relate to acceptable conditions of work, like minimum wage. It requires parties not to waive or derogate from the provisions that achieve a trade or investment advantage. And the standards on the environmental side are equally high,” he said.

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