South Korea is expected to sign a free trade agreement with Turkey as early as June, Seoul's top envoy to Turkey said Tuesday as talks are underway to lower tariffs between the two nations.

"Turkey's government and companies hope to strike a free trade agreement with South Korea as soon as possible," Ambassador Lee Sang-kyu said during an interview with Yonhap News Agency. He was visiting Seoul to attend an annual conference of overseas mission chiefs.

  

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak earlier this month paid a visit to Turkish President Abdullah Gul seeking to expand bilateral cooperation and sign a trade deal within the first half of this year.

Turkey is in a customs union with the European Union that removes duty on goods traded between the two sides. While the deal exempts taxes on South Korean products imported to Turkey, Turkish goods are still subject to tariffs when imported to the Asian nation, which makes the Eurasian country eager to sign a deal, Lee explained.

The ambassador also said the two sides will resume talks on an atomic power plant construction project in Turkey, which have been stalled since 2010 over differences on price and financing.

"I think Turkey will decide its position on the atomic power plant project within this year," Lee said.

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Source: Yonhap News (Feb. 21, 2012)