South Korea's foreign ministry is reviewing all of its past foreign treaties and agreements for translation errors after taking the blame recently for similar mistakes in a free trade deal with the European Union (EU), an official said Sunday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has come under fire for making more than 200 errors and omissions in the Korean-language text of the EU deal scheduled to take effect in July after parliamentary ratification in Seoul. Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon last week made a public apology, while Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik called on Kim and all officials involved to "take due responsibility for the errors."
"In light of this event, we are not only looking into all free trade agreements (FTAs) but other existing treaties and agreements for possible errors," the ministry official said on the condition of anonymity. "We are correcting any incorrect or problematic areas through a strict reexamination."
Such treaties and agreements between nations cover a wide range of areas including economic cooperation, science and technology, culture, avoidance of double taxation, investment guarantees and legal cooperation. In case a mistake is found, the ministry plans to take corrective measures or consult the nations involved.