Lee bars redraft on US beef export deal

Source: Agencies  |   2008-6-26  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

SOUTH Korea's government said yesterday it will resume imports of American beef this week, hoping to move on from a crisis that battered the pro-US administration with weeks of anti-government protests over food safety.

South Korea and the United States agreed last week to restrict US beef exports to younger cattle, believed to be at less risk of mad cow disease. The agreement modifies an earlier deal that placed few restrictions on meat shipments, and sparked widespread outrage against the government for caving in to Washington and ignoring the public's concerns.

Korean activists, however, have vowed to keep rallying against new President Lee Myung-bak, calling for a complete renegotiation of the original April beef accord. Lee's government has rejected a renegotiation, saying it would erode the country's international credibility.

"The observation of an agreement is very important for state-to-state relations and it is very essential to maintain national credibility on the international stage," Prime Minister Han Seung-soo said at a meeting with top ruling party leaders yesterday, according to his office.

The Agriculture Ministry has asked the Public Administration Ministry to issue a legal notice on the resumption of American beef imports, the final administrative step required before imports can resume, according to Agriculture Ministry spokesman Lim Ki-sang.

Some 5,300 tons of US beef, shipped earlier to South Korea but held in customs and quarantine storage facilities, will first undergo inspections before being put on the market, according to the Agriculture Ministry.

Faced with daily candlelight vigils against imports of US beef, President Lee replaced his top advisers and apologized to the public for the second time last week. His entire Cabinet has also offered to resign.

Lee said on Tuesday that he would not tolerate any illegal, violent demonstrations against the planned resumption of beef imports.

Demonstrations have dwindled in size since some 80,000 people gathered in central Seoul two weeks ago in the largest recent protest.