Brussels, 23/07/2007 (Agence Europe) - During their meeting on 16-20 July in Brussels, the 180 European and South Korean negotiators accomplished a considerable amount of work during this second session of discussions. A European Commission press release at the end of the four days work indicated that discussions had focused on a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) between the EU and South Korea (EUROPE 9427 and 9469). All aspects of this subject were covered in the discussions: industrial services, services and investment, rules on intellectual property, public procurement competition, regulatory and institutional questions (transparency, sustainable development and settling trade disputes). Peter Power, the spokesperson for trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson, said the Commission had, in fact, called on Seoul to present¸ “a more ambitious” offer during the 3rd negotiations session next September. Mr Power explained that they wanted to obtain more progress in September but that negotiations were on the right track. (eh)