Trade and investment
1. The Parties undertake to cooperate in securing the conditions for and promoting the sustainable increase and development of trade and investment between them to their mutual advantage. The Parties shall engage in dialogue and strengthen cooperation in all trade-and investment-related areas of mutual interest, in order to facilitate sustainable trade and investment flows, to prevent and remove obstacles to trade and investment, and to advance the multilateral trade system.
2. To this end, the Parties shall give effect to their cooperation in the trade and investment area through the agreement establishing a free trade area. The aforementioned agreement shall constitute a specific agreement giving effect to the trade provisions of this Agreement, within the terms of Article 43.
3. The Parties shall keep each other informed and exchange views concerning the development of bilateral and international trade, investment and related policies and issues.
Economic policy dialogue
1. The Parties agree to strengthen the dialogue between their authorities and to promote the exchange of information and the sharing of experiences on macroeconomic policies and trends.
2. The Parties agree to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with a view to improving accounting, auditing, supervisory and regulatory systems in banking, insurance and other parts of the financial sector.
Business cooperation
1. The Parties, taking into account their respective economic policies and objectives, agree to promote industrial policy cooperation in all fields deemed suitable particularly with a view to improving the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), inter alia, through:
(a)
exchanging information and experiences on creating framework conditions for SMEs to improve their competitiveness and on procedures related to the creation of SMEs;
(b)
promoting contacts between economic operators, encouraging joint investments and establishing joint ventures and information networks notably through existing programmes;
(c)
facilitating access to finance and marketing, providing information and stimulating innovation;
(d)
facilitating the activities established by SMEs of both sides;
(e)
promoting corporate social responsibility and accountability and encouraging responsible business practices, including sustainable consumption and production.
2. The Parties shall facilitate the relevant cooperation activities established by the private sectors of both sides.
Taxation
With a view to strengthening and developing economic activities while taking into account the need to develop an appropriate regulatory framework, the Parties recognise and commit themselves to implement in the tax area the principles of transparency, exchange of information and fair tax competition. To that effect, in accordance with their respective competences, the Parties will improve international cooperation in the tax area, facilitate the collection of legitimate tax revenues, and develop measures for the effective implementation of the above mentioned principles.
Customs
The Parties shall cooperate in the customs field on a bilateral and multilateral basis. To this end, they shall in particular share experiences and examine possibilities to simplify procedures, increase transparency and develop cooperation. They shall also seek convergence of views and joint action in relevant international frameworks.
Competition policy
1. The Parties shall foster fair competition in economic activities by fully enforcing their competition laws and regulations.
2. In pursuit of the goal of paragraph 1 of this Article and in accordance with the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Korea and the European Community concerning cooperation on anti-competitive activities, the Parties shall undertake to cooperate in:
(a)
recognising the importance of competition law and competition authorities and striving to proactively enforce the law in order to create an environment for fair competition;
(b)
sharing information and enhancing cooperation between competition authorities.
Information society
1. Recognising that Information and Communication Technologies are key elements of modern life and of vital importance to economic and social development, the Parties agree to exchange views on their respective policies in this field.
2. Cooperation in this area shall, inter alia, focus on:
(a)
exchanging views on the different aspects of the Information Society, in particular electronic communications policies and regulation including universal service, licensing and general authorisations, protection of privacy and personal data, and the independence and efficiency of the regulatory authority;
(b)
interconnection and interoperability of research networks and services, including in a regional context;
(c)
standardisation and dissemination of new information and communication technologies;
(d)
promotion of research cooperation between the Parties in the area of Information and Communication Technologies;
(e)
security issues and aspects of information and communication technologies including promotion of online safety, combating cyber crime and the misuse of information technology and all forms of electronic media.
3. Business-to-business cooperation shall be encouraged.
Science and technology
The Parties shall encourage, develop and facilitate cooperative activities in the areas of science and technology for peaceful purposes, in accordance with the Agreement on the Scientific and Technological Cooperation between the European Community and the Government of the Republic of Korea.
Energy
1. The Parties recognise the importance of the energy sector to economic and social development and shall endeavour, within the scope of their respective competences, to enhance cooperation in this field with a view to:
(a)
diversifying energy supplies in order to strengthen energy security and to develop new, sustainable, innovative and renewable forms of energy, including, inter alia, biofuels and biomass, wind and solar energy as well as hydro power generation;
(b)
supporting the development of policies to render renewable energy more competitive;
(c)
achieving rational use of energy with contributions from both supply and demand sides by promoting energy efficiency in energy production, transportation, distribution and end-use;
(d)
fostering the transfer of technology aimed at sustainable energy production and energy efficiency;
(e)
enhancing capacity-building and facilitation of investment in the field of energy taking into account principles of transparency, non-discrimination and market-compatibility;
(f)
promoting competition in the energy market;
(g)
exchanging views on developments in the global energy markets, including impact on developing countries.
2. To these ends, the Parties will work as appropriate to promote, particularly through existing regional and international frameworks, the following cooperative activities:
(a)
cooperation in energy policy-making and exchange of information relevant to energy policies;
(b)
exchange of information on status and trends in the energy market, industry and technology;
(c)
conduct of joint studies and research;
(d)
increase of trade and investment in the energy sector.
Transport
1. The Parties shall endeavour to cooperate in all relevant areas of transport policy, including integrated transport policy, with a view to improving the movement of goods and passengers, promoting maritime and aviation safety and security, environmental protection, and increasing the efficiency of their transport systems.
2. Cooperation between the Parties in this area shall aim to promote:
(a)
exchanges of information on their respective transport policies and practices, especially regarding urban, rural, inland waterway, air and maritime transport, including their logistics and the interconnection and interoperability of multimodal transport networks, as well as the management of road, railways, ports and airports;
(b)
a dialogue and joint actions in the field of air transport in areas of mutual interest, including the agreement on certain aspect of air services and the examination of possibilities for further development of relations, as well as technical and regulatory cooperation in areas such as aviation safety, security, environment, air traffic management, application of competition law and economic regulation of the air transport industry, with a view to supporting regulatory convergence and removal of obstacles to doing business. On this basis, the Parties will explore more comprehensive cooperation in the area of civil aviation;
(c)
cooperation on the reduction in the greenhouse gas emissions in transport sector;
(d)
cooperation in terms of international transport fora;
(e)
the implementation of security, safety, and pollution prevention standards, notably as regards maritime transport and aviation, in line with the relevant international conventions applicable to both Parties, including cooperation in the appropriate international fora aimed at ensuring better enforcement of international regulations.
3. As regards civil global satellite navigation, the Parties shall cooperate in accordance with the Cooperation Agreement on a Civil Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Korea, of the other part.
Maritime transport policy
1. The Parties undertake to move towards the goal of unrestricted access to the international maritime market and traffic based on fair competition on a commercial basis, in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
2. In pursuit of the goal of paragraph 1, the Parties shall:
(a)
not introduce cargo-sharing arrangements in future bilateral agreements with third countries concerning maritime transport services, including dry and liquid bulk and liner trade, and not activate such cargo-sharing arrangements in case they exist in previous bilateral agreements;
(b)
abstain from implementing, on entry into force of this Agreement, administrative and technical and legislative measures which could have the effect of discriminating between their own nationals or companies and those of the other Party in the supply of services in international maritime transport;
(c)
grant no less favourable treatment for the ships operated by nationals or companies of the other Party, than that accorded to its own ships, with regard to access to ports open to international trade, the use of infrastructure and auxiliary maritime services of the ports, as well as related fees and charges, customs facilities and assignment of berths and facilities for loading and unloading;
(d)
allow the shipping companies of the other Party to have their commercial presence in its territory for the purpose of carrying out shipping agency activities under conditions of establishment and operation no less favourable than those accorded to its own companies or to subsidiaries or branches of companies of any non-member country, whichever is the better.
3. For the purpose of this Article, access to the international maritime market shall include, inter alia, the right for international maritime transport providers of each Party to arrange door-to-door transport services involving a sea leg, and to this effect to directly contract with local providers of transport modes other than maritime transport on the territory of the other Party without prejudice to applicable nationality restrictions concerning the carriage of goods and passengers by those other transport modes.
4. The provisions of this Article shall apply to European Union companies and Korean companies. Beneficiaries of the provisions of this Article shall also be shipping companies established outside the European Union or the Republic of Korea and controlled by nationals of a Member State or of the Republic of Korea, if their vessels are registered in that Member State or in the Republic of Korea in accordance with their respective legislations.
5. The issue of the operations in the European Union and in the Republic of Korea of shipping agency activities shall be dealt with by specific agreements, where appropriate.
6. The Parties shall pursue a dialogue in the field of maritime transport policy.
Consumer Policy
The Parties shall endeavour to cooperate in the field of consumer policy in order to secure a high level of consumer protection. The Parties agree that cooperation within this field may involve to the extent possible:
(a)
increasing the compatibility of consumer legislation in order to avoid barriers to trade while ensuring a high level of consumer protection;
(b)
promoting exchange of information on consumer systems, including consumer laws, consumer product safety, enforcement of consumer legislation, consumer education and empowerment, and consumer redress;
(c)
encouraging the development of independent consumer associations and contacts between consumer representatives.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
