'Corona Trade' Era... Discussion on Negotiation Strategies

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 28th that it held a virtual meeting with public and private trade experts to discuss 'Non-face-to-face Trade Negotiation Strategies in the With-Corona Era.'

Lee Kyung-sik, Free Trade Agreement Negotiator at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, presided over the meeting. Park Sang-gi, Vice President of the Korean Negotiation Society, along with academic and industry trade experts, attended the meeting.

The participants discussed strategies and key elements of non-face-to-face negotiations.

Advanced countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom have recently been conducting major trade negotiations, including the US-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), through non-face-to-face methods.

Since April, South Korea has also been conducting major negotiations, including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), in a non-face-to-face manner.

The participants anticipated that it will be necessary to actively utilize non-face-to-face negotiations as part of future trade policy to continuously expand South Korea's FTA network.

Vice President Park predicted in his presentation that "even after the COVID-19 situation stabilizes, non-face-to-face trade negotiations will continue to be used as a new negotiation method."

He explained the advantages and disadvantages of non-face-to-face negotiations, negotiation techniques according to situations and timing during non-face-to-face negotiations, effective non-face-to-face persuasion strategies, and attitudes toward non-face-to-face negotiations, covering strategies and key elements of non-face-to-face negotiations.

The experts in attendance agreed on the need to continuously maintain non-face-to-face contact with counterpart countries to ensure 'smooth trade of goods and services,' 'securing the global value chain (GVC),' and 'guaranteeing the movement of essential personnel such as businesspeople,' despite COVID-19.

An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "This expert meeting served as a valuable forum to explore countermeasures for non-face-to-face trade negotiations," adding, "We plan to continuously strengthen communication with academia and industry going forward."