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SEOUL, KOREA - SOUTH Korea has won extra health safeguards from the United States on beef imports, a report said, in a crucial development after weeks of mass protests here against the deal.
The safeguards were reached during key talks in Washington earlier this week between US and South Korean trade officials, the Yonhap news agency said on Saturday.
Under the deal, the United States will not export beef to South Korea from cattle older than 30 months, in a move aimed at alleviating fears in South Korea of mad cow disease, Yonhap said.
It also bans shipments of parts such as heads, spinal cords, small intestines and tonsils, which are deemed vulnerable to the disease, Yonhap said, quoting unnamed government sources.
To implement the new safeguards, the US government has agreed to run an age-verification quality system assessment programme for South Korea, it said.
The government is expected to hold a press conference to discuss the outcome of the Washington talks later on Saturday.
South Korea's embattled President Lee Myung Bak has faced growing crisis over the deal to resume US imports, suspended since 2003 after a case of mad cow disease case in the United States.
On Friday he replaced seven top aides to give his government a fresh start after weeks of mass protests against the deal.
The report came as Trade Minister Kim Jong Hoon returned from the Washington talks with US Trade Representative Susan Schwab. He is due to speak at Saturday's press conference.
Mr Lee's government, eager to clear the way for a wider free trade deal, agreed in April to lift most restrictions on lucrative US beef imports.
The deal, and the hasty way it was reached, sparked the political crisis, as tens of thousands of protesters began a month of rallies fuelled by fears of the disease and other grievances against the government.
The pact to resume imports has not yet gone into force because of the protests, even though both governments say the meat is totally safe.
South Korea's beef importers had requested US beef exporters to ship only cattle less than 30 months old in order to address the public concerns here.
Three associations representing the US beef industry - the US Meat Export Federation, the American Meat Institute and the National Meat Association - on Friday agreed to accept the South Korean request. -- AFP
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