U.S., South Korea strengthen ties

U.S., South Korea strengthen ties    U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and South Korea's Minister of Knowledge Economy Lee Youn Ho on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding on commercial cooperation.
   The MOU outlines three areas for bilateral cooperation:
   ' Trade and investment.
   ' High-tech and strategic trade.
   ' Standards and research and development.
   Locke and Lee also expressed support for removing barriers to trade, including finding a way forward on the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement and working cooperatively on a successful conclusion to the Doha round of the World Trade Organization negotiations.
      'The United States and Korea traded $83 billion in goods in 2008, a record,' Locke said.