Joint Statement of the U.S. and EU Delegations on The U.S.- EU Air Transport Agreement

Delegations representing the European Union and the United States met from November 14-18 in Washington, D.C. to continue negotiations on a comprehensive first-step air transport agreement.

The delegations negotiated the text of an agreement, which will be reviewed for final approval.

For the European Union, the agreement will require approval by the Transport Council of Ministers, consisting of the twenty-five EU Member States. In this connection, the EU delegation noted that the Council, in making a decision, will take into account the outcome of the rulemaking process recently initiated by the U.S. Department of Transportation to expand opportunities for foreign citizens to invest in and participate in the management of U.S. air carriers.

This successful round of negotiations in Washington follows over two years of formal talks, announced at the U.S.-EU Summit in June 2003 as "an historic opportunity to build upon the framework of existing agreements with the goal of opening access to markets and maximizing benefits for consumers, airlines, and communities on both sides of the Atlantic."

Participating in the negotiations were representatives of the European Commission, the EU Member States, and a wide range of U.S. Government departments and agencies, as well as observers from European and American associations representing airlines, airports, labor, and computer reservation systems companies. The delegations were chaired by Daniel Calleja of the Commission Directorate General for Transport and Energy and John Byerly of the Department of State.

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