WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th July, 2019) The Trump administration during consultations with South Korean officials called on Seoul to respect the due process rights of US companies, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) said in a press release.
"Michael Beeman, Assistant US Trade Representative for Japan, Korea and APEC led the consultation and called for immediate action by Korea to come into compliance with KORUS [Korea-US Trade Agreement]," the release said on Tuesday. "These shortcomings have denied US parties certain rights, including the opportunity to review and rebut the evidence against them."
In March, the USTR requested formal consultations following extensive efforts to resolve concerns over due process rights, the release addded.
Although no specific incident was cited some believe a case involving Qualcomm may have triggered the USTR request for consultations, according to Yonhap. In 2016, Qualcomm complained about difficulties defending itself in hearings after being fined $845 million by South Korean regulators for violating local antitrust laws.
