WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 (Yonhap) -- A U.S. congressional committee Wednesday approved a free trade pact with South Korea, setting the stage for the full House of Representatives to vote on it.
The House Ways and Means Committee passed the free trade agreement (FTA) in a 31-5 vote. It also endorsed FTAs with Colombia and Panama.
Rep. David Camp (R-MI), the committee's chairman, said the floor of the House is expected to consider the bills on implementing the FTAs next week. The bills also require Senate approval.
"For the past five years we have been working towards this day," Camp said. He emphasized the significance of the trade deals as his country struggles to create jobs.
"With zero jobs created last month and the unemployment rate hovering above 9 percent, we must look at all opportunities to create American jobs. These agreements do just that," he added.
The committee's action came a couple of days after President Barack Obama submitted the deals to Congress following years of delay.
U.S. and South Korean officials hope that the bilateral FTA, signed in 2007, will be ratified by Congress before President Lee Myung-bak holds summit talks with Obama in Washington next Thursday.
The FTAs are being handled under so-called "fast track" rules, which allow Congress only to approve or disapprove them without amending the terms.
The House speaker, John Boehner (R-Ohio), said the deals are a "top priority" and promised to move quickly.
For the U.S., the deal with South Korea, called KORUS FTA, is the largest trade pact since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement.
