The beef between the U.S. and South Korea came to an end on June 20 when American officials agreed to President Lee Myung-Bak’s demand that the U.S. export beef to Korea only from cattle 30 months old or younger due to its lower risk of mad cow disease. In addition, a Quality System Assessment program has been placed to certify the meat’s sanitation. Any meat imported without the certification will be sent back, announced Korean trade minister Kim Jong-hoon.

Once the third-largest importer of U.S. beef, South Korea placed a ban in 2003 when the first cases of the disease appeared in the U.S. In April, during a visit to Washington, Lee lifted the ban, stating that this was an opportunity to foster economic growth, as the ban put a strain on a the ratification of a free-trade agreement between the two countries.

His decision came at the cost of public outrage. Approximately 100,000 protestors gathered in Seoul on June 10 outside Lee’s residence in a candlelight vigil, an act that the New York Times calls South Korea’s largest anti-government demonstration since the 1980s. Along with a full cabinet resignation and multiple firings, Lee’s opponents have called him “out of touch” with the publics’ needs and demanded that he cease pandering to U.S. interests.

Lee, who had witnessed the vigil, has since apologized in a televised address, saying that he regrets ignoring the public with the decision. “No matter how urgent a national agenda it was, we should have paid attention to what the people wanted and how they will accept it. My government and I painfully regret this,” Lee said, as quoted by Reuters. He then spoke with President Bush over the phone, notifying him on reinstating the ban.

Trade officials from both countries met on June 18 in Washington to discuss a resolution. Though the World Organization for Animal Health declared American beef fit for consumption back in May 2007, analysts suspected competition with South Korean beef producers a factor in upholding the ban.

The nationwide truckers’ strike has also been an issue unhelpful in quelling the unrest or the widespread discontent with the five-month-old government. About 13,000 truckers stopped going to work due to decreased pay from rising fuel costs. A few hundred returned on June 19 after deals were settled with their firms, such as Hyundai Steel. During the one-week strike, nearly $6 billion was lost in businesses, adding a thorn to the beef crisis.

Korean Americans have also reacted to the decisions made by President Lee. On May 28, The Korea Times reported that a Korean American by the name of Jang is the primary suspect in posting a video clip of Korean police authorities brutally attacking the beef protesters during a demonstration. The video spread quickly through the Internet, prompting netizens to rail further against the government. Authorities later found the footage to be from the anti-U.S.-Korea free trade protest last March.