US President Barack Obama failed to seal a sweeping trade pact with South Korea because he felt it was not in the best interests of the United States, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Sunday.
"The president didn't finalise a deal in Korea because he was not satisfied that the deal was in the best interests of America," the top US diplomat told CBS. "And that's what a president is supposed to do, and so he did the right thing." Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak said earlier this month that they needed more time to negotiate the accord, despite intense talks in Seoul.
The failure to reach a deal during Obama's high-profile visit to the country, and just ahead of a G20 summit in Seoul, was seen as embarrassing given the close ties between the leaders and their two countries.
The Obama administration has been pressing South Korea to give greater access to US cars and beef, but South Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-Hoon has said the US hesitation is due to political considerations.
"I think the US side raised its concerns over the auto trade for political reasons, not for economic reasons," Kim said last week, quoted by Yonhap news agency, adding talks will continue on a compromise deal.
The pact was signed three years ago under the previous US administration but US automakers and beef exporters had demanded new concessions.
Kim said the US side during the latest talks demanded more time to scrap its tariffs on South Korean cars, and an easing of South Korean safety and emission standards.
Under the 2007 accord the US agreed to eliminate its 2.5 percent tariff within three years. In return, South Korea promised to immediately abolish its 8.0 percent tariff on US-made cars.
The US also demanded the scrapping of so-called duty drawbacks, which allow refunds for tariffs on imported parts used by auto manufacturers, the minister said.
Washington is also urging South Korea further to open its beef market, an issue which Seoul says is not related to the trade deal. South Korea imports beef only from cattle less than 30 months old due to fears of mad cow disease.