South Korean president tells Congress trade pact will spur growth

In an address to members of Congress Thursday, South Korea’s president thanked lawmakers for passing a long-awaited trade agreement with his country, what he called the opening of a “new chapter” in the already strong relations between the two nations.

President Lee Myung-bak spoke to a joint meeting of Congress a day after the House and Senate ratified the South Korea trade pact and two others that had languished amid the partisan rancor that has come to define Washington. Both chambers quickly passed the legislation.

“I am particularly grateful to the leadership of both parties and all of the esteemed members of Congress for ratifying the Korean trade agreement last night in a swift manner, which, I am told, was quite unprecedented,” Lee said, speaking in Korean with an English translation. “It is a win for our corporations, a win for our workers, a win for small businesses and a win for all the innovators on both sides of the Pacific.”

The South Korean leader expressed gratitude for the deep ties between the countries, the political and economic values that connect them. He saluted by name the four current members of Congress who had served in the Korean War.

“We go together,” he said, explaining a Korean expression. “Indeed, we have been going together for 60 years.”

Lee spoke of the growing economic opportunities between the two countries, noting Kia automotive plants in Georgia and Michigan, and a joint GM-South Korean venture outside Seoul.

Members of the House and Senate filled the House chamber for the address, as visitors in the gallery looked on. At times, Lee touched on topics that could have broader appeal to congressional Democrats than Republicans.

The South Korean president insisted that economic growth cannot to come at the expense of environmental degradation, and he spoke of his country’s work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support renewable energy.

“In the 21^st century, economies must be green to grow,” he said.

Lee said he was often asked about his country’s swift economic advance from an impoverished nation a generation ago, and he said he always answers with the same response: “The power of education.”

At least one Democrat, Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the whip, looked across the chamber to his colleagues.

“Learning was the key,” Lee said. “My parents, all parents, believed education was the best way to break that vicious cycle of poverty.”

As the two counties have marked the 60 years since the onset of Korean War, Lee expressed his appreciation for the continued U.S. military presence. He pressed for a unified, nuclear-free Korea.

“A unified Korea will be a friend for all and a threat to none,” he said. “North Korea must give up their nuclear ambitions.”

Lee called out by name the four members of Congress who had served in the Korean War: Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Michigan), Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.), Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Texas) and Rep. Howard Coble (D-N.C.). As he left the chamber, he greeted them and shook their hands.

The president had met earlier in the day at the White House with President Obama.

lmascaro@tribune.com