CIVAIR ITALY ON U.S.-EU AGREEMENT ISSUES

UNCLAS ROME 001893

SIPDIS


SENSITIVE

STATE FOR EB/TRA BYERLY, EUR/WE, EUR/ERA;
DOT FOR PGRETCH;
DOC FOR DE FALCO

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAIR IT EUN AVIATION
SUBJECT: CIVAIR ITALY ON U.S.-EU AGREEMENT ISSUES

REF: STATE 91041


1. (SBU) ALDO SANSONE, TRANSPORT MINISTRY DG FOR
INTERNATIONAL AVIATION, TOLD ECONOFFS MAY 13 THAT ITALY WAS
WATCHING THE U.S.-EU NEGOTIATIONS WITH CONCERN. IN HIS VIEW,
"THIS IS FUNDAMENTALLY AN INTRA-EU PROBLEM." SANSONE
EXPLAINED THAT THE COMMISSION HAD REQUESTED A BROAD MANDATE
FOR THE U.S.-EU CIVAIR NEGOTIATIONS, WHICH HAD BEEN APPROVED
BY MEMBER STATES. NOW THE COMMISSION HAD COME BACK FOR EVEN
MORE NEGOTIATING AUTHORITY. SANSONE BELIEVED THAT MEMBER
STATES SHOULD STAND FIRM, AND INSIST ON THE LIMITS OF THE
INITIAL MANDATE.


2. (SBU) SANSONE SAW THE PROCESS OF REACHING A U.S.-EU
AGREEMENT AS THE FIRST STEP IN REPLACING ALL OF THE
INDIVIDUAL MEMBER STATES' BILATERAL CIVAIR AGREEMENTS WITH
THIRD COUNTRIES WITH NEW EU AGREEMENTS. THE U.S.-EU
NEGOTIATION SHOULD HAVE BEEN RELATIVELY STRAIGHT FORWARD, IN
SANSONE'S VIEW, SERVING AS A MODEL AGREEMENT FOR THE OTHERS.
HOWEVER, THINGS HAD NOT GONE SMOOTHLY.


3. (SBU) ITALY, MAINTAINED SANSONE, HAD WORKED TO RESOLVE THE
VARIOUS PROBLEMS. SANSONE HAD WORKED ON TEXT IN NOVEMBER TO
RESOLVE THE "FREE RIDER" ISSUE. HE HAD TRIED TO FIND A
FORMULATION TO RESOLVE THE CABOTAGE ISSUE, BUT HAD FOUND THIS
PROBLEM FAR MORE COMPLEX THAN EXPECTED. SANSONE UNDERLINED
THAT THE CABOTAGE ISSUE WAS DRIVEN BY THE COMMISSION. ITALY,
HE EXPLAINED, HAD NO COMMERCIAL INTEREST IN CABOTAGE IN THE
U.S., GIVEN THAT ALITALIA COULD NOT EVEN SERVE THE ROUTES IT
ALREADY HAD UNDER THE EXISTING BILATERAL.


4. (SBU) REGARDING A FIRST-STEP AGREEMENT, SANSONE SAID THAT
HE WOULD SUPPORT SUCH AN ACCORD IF IT BOTH RESOLVED THE LEGAL
PROBLEMS WITH THE OPEN SKIES AGREEMENTS AND CONTAINED SOME
ADDITIONAL SUBSTANTIVE CONTENT. OTHERWISE, HE THOUGHT IT
WOULD BE TOO MUCH TROUBLE TO NEGOTIATE FOR THE BENEFIT
OBTAINED.


5. (SBU) SANSONE REGARDED COMMISSIONER DE PALACIO'S THREAT TO
ABROGATE MEMBER STATE BILATERAL AGREEMENTS WITH THE U.S. AS A
PROBLEM, BUT NOT A "TRAIN WRECK". HE RECALLED A DENUNCIATION,
IN THE LATE 1960S, OF THE U.S.-ITALY CIVAIR BILATERAL. AIR
TRAFFIC CONTINUED BETWEEN THE U.S. AND ITALY, WHILE A NEW
AGREEMENT WAS NEGOTIATED. HE ANTICIPATED THAT A PROVISIONAL
ACCORD COULD BE WORKED OUT TO CONTINUE AIR SERVICES BETWEEN
THE U.S. AND EU, EVEN IF THE BILATERALS WERE DENOUNCED.
HOWEVER, HE HOPED THE SITUATION WOULD NOT DETERIORATE TO THAT
POINT.

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