BRUSSELS, Oct 4, 2010 (AFP) - Japan hopes to follow in the footsteps of South Korea by striking a free trade deal with the EU but said Monday the 27-nation bloc remains divided about embracing the Asian economic powerhouse.
"Japan is willing to start discussions but we see that the European side is still having difficulty in building up a consensus," government spokesman Satoru Satoh told a small group of journalists on the sidelines of a two-day Asia-Europe summit.
At an EU-South Korea summit Wednesday, held on the heels of a two-day Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) gathering 46 nations, Brussels will sign a free trade pact with Seoul described as its "most ambitious agreement ever".
It was given a green light by European Union leaders last month after Italy dropped its objections over fears for its vital car industry.
The Japanese spokesman said that unlike his country's free and open economy, "European markets retain a high level of tariffs" -- including 10 percent on automobiles, 14 percent on liquid crystal display TVs.
Trade between Japan and the EU hit 117 billion dollars in 2008, with Tokyo one of the bloc's top trading partners.
"Now we are in fifth position," he said. "We could do much better."
Talks to forge a closer economic partnership between Brussels and Tokyo kicked off last year but have tripped up on European auto-industry fears and differences in approval for drugs and medical devices.
"We are hoping to launch free trade agreement negotiations next year," Noriyuki Shikata, deputy cabinet secretary for public relations, told AFP.
South Korea, the officials opined, had secured a deal with EU thanks to its dogged determination to find new markets following the financial crisis of the late 1990s.
"Now Japan is following South Korea," Satoh said. But with Korean production only a quarter or a fifth of Japan;s "it is less threatening".
