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TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ACTS SERIES 20-101.4 

TRADE AND INVESTMENT 

Agreement Between the 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

and OTHER GOVERNMENTS 

Signed at Sejon, Seoul, Bangkok, Hanoi, and 

Washington December 12, 20, 24 and 30, 2019 

Entered into force January 1, 2020 
 

 

NOTE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

Pursuant to Public Law 89—497, approved July 8, 1966 

(80 Stat. 271; 1 U.S.C. 113)— 

“. . .the Treaties and Other International Acts Series issued 

under the authority of the Secretary of State shall be competent 

evidence . . . of the treaties, international agreements other than 

treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and 

international agreements other than treaties, as the case may be, 

therein contained, in all the courts of law and equity and of maritime 

jurisdiction, and in all the tribunals and public offices of the 

United States, and of the several States, without any further proof 

or authentication thereof.” 
AGREEMENT BElWEEN THE GOVERNMENTS OF 

AUS1RALIA, THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CIHNA, 

THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, THE KINGDOM OF THAILAND, 

THE UNTIED STATES OF AMERICA, 

AND THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM 
In connection with discussions undertaken by the Republic of Korea pursuant 

to Article XIII(2)(d) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the 

Governments of Australia, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of Korea, 

the Kingdom of Thailand, the United States of America, and the Socialist 

Republic of Viet Nam (the Parties), have agreed as follows with respect to the 

408,700 metric ton (MT) World Trade Organization (WTO) tariff-rate quota 

(TRQ) for rice (the Rice TRQ) maintained by the Government of Korea: 

l. Within the Rice TRQ, Korea shall establish a country-specific quota (CSQ) 

for each of the other Parties. Korea shall allocate the following CSQ volumes to 

each: 

• Volumes shown in MT, Milled basis 

Australia 15,595; 

China 157,195; 

Thailand 28,494; 

United States 132,304; and 

Viet Nam 55,112. 

2. Korea shall make 20,000 MT (milled basis) of the Rice TRQ available on a 

Most-Favored Nation (MFN) basis to all WTO Members, including the Parties. 

3. Korea shall ensure that tendering for imports under the CSQs is implemented 

in accordance with internationally recognized practices. The authorities 

administering the tendering process reserve the right to retender in the event that 

the prices offered in all submitted bids are unreasonably high, taking into account 

the international price of rice of comparable type and quality prevailing at the 

time of bidding. If a tender for imports under a CSQ fails for three times due to 

reasons including non-compliance by bidders with tendering terms and conditions, 

the authorities administering the tendering process may, provided the Party whose 

CSQ was the subject of the failed tenders consents, retender on an MFN basis 

the volume previously sought in the failed tenders. Korea requires that imports 

under the Rice TRQ for a given quota year occur during that quota year. 

I 4. Any 
4. Any Party may request consultations with Korea with respect to the Rice 

TRQ. Such consultations shall be held within thirty days of the request, or as 

soon as possible thereafter in the event of an unavoidable delay. 

5. In the tenth year after the year of entry into force of this Agreement, Korea 

may review the CSQ allocations in paragraph 1, taking into account, among other 

things, domestic demand and global trade flows for rice. Korea shall not adjust a 

CSQ established pursuant to paragraph 1 unless all Parties to this Agreement 

consent. 

6. As soon as practicable after the date of entry into force of this Agreement, 

and no later than fourteen days after that date, the objections to the draft 

rectifications and modifications to Schedule LX proposed by Korea in document 

G/MA/TAR/RS/396 that are raised in each of the following documents shall be 

withdrawn by the Party that noted the objection: 

o Australia - letter of December 22, 2014 from James Baxter, Charge 

d'affaires of the Australian Permanent Mission to the WTO, to Seokyoung 

Choi, Ambassador and Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of 

the Republic of Korea to the WTO; 

o China - letter of December 29, 2014 from ZHU Hong, Minister, Deputy 

Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China to the World 

Trade Organization, to Yi Xiaozhun, Deputy Director-General of the 

World Trade Organization; 

o Thailand - letter of December 22, 2014 from Wiboonlasana Ruamraksa, 

Ambassador of Permanent Representative of Thailand to the World Trade 

Organization, to Ambassador Choi Seokyoung, Permanent Representative of 

the Republic of Korea to the World Trade Organization, Geneva; 

o United States - letter of December 23, 2014 from Christopher Wilson, 

Deputy Chief of Mission, Permanent Mission of the United States to the 

World Trade Organization, to Ambassador Yoo Yeonchul, Deputy 

Permanent Representative to the WTO, Permanent Mission of the Republic 

of Korea to the United Nations Office and other International 

Organizations in Geneva; 

o Viet Nam letter of December 8, 2014 from the Permanent Mission of 

/ the Socialist 
the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, to the United Nations Office and 

Other International Organizations at Geneva to Market Access Committee 

of the World Trade Organization 

7. This Agreement shall enter into force on January 1, 2020. 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF 

THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA THE KINGDOM OF THAILAND 

Signed at : c3 ~ YI~ , kc,~ Signed at : ~~+o,} J ~i ~nJ 

0n : c>-0f9. f,l_. r .1 On : <o 18 • 1 ~ 24 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF 

AUSTRALIA THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

Signed at : f~()t,f t-" /C..() t:.~IJ Signed at : We.-' J.. ; ""j -/-."' D ~ 

On : )-0. 12.. /'f On : JJ... .. 70 - 2,.01, 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF 

TI-IE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET 

NAM 

~tr.-_ 

Signed at: S'EOUI..-,, }<.(){(~ Signed at : \\o.., ~ , \fd NO\NY" 

On: on : 'J,Ol 1. ll. . ao.