The USA plans to propose a wide multilateral revision of investment limits as part of the second stage of Europe-US -liberalisation negotiations.
Lead US negotiator John Byerly says “as a core objective of investment liberalisation in the second stage, the EU and the US should include a much expanded list of countries for which, reciprocally, each side will pledge to forgo existing rights to bar air services on the basis of the nationality clause”. Speaking in mid-May -before the opening of stage two Open Skies talks in Slovenia, -Byerly said the USA will put -forward a list of over 60 countries from the EU and elsewhere.
By suggesting that the scope be widened to include non-EU members, the USA clearly intends to put pressure on both the European Commission and the US Congress. Congress killed the last US offer on ownership and control in late 2006 when it moved to block a loosening of the strict interpretation of US limits on control. Foreign investors can only take a 25% stake in US carriers at present. After the 2006 talks, the two sides agreed to separate issues into a first and a second stage; the first stage took -effect at the end of March. The two sides have a deadline of 2010 for agreeing a stage two deal.
Byerly added that the USA plans no formal offers on the environment in the opening round, but reiterated the US position that “any eventual discussions should be consistent with ICAO principles and centre on performance, not the adoption of a particular measure”. And he says of noise limits in Europe, the USA “may seek more systemic, procedural commitments from the EU in the second stage. These could include a US proposal that the EU replace the noise directive with a more easily enforceable noise regulation”.
Source: Airline Business