Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
04THEHAGUE1920
2004-07-30 16:09:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy The Hague
Cable title:  

CIVAIR: KLM SEES NO ECONOMIC RATIOANLE FOR

Tags:  EAIR EU NL 
pdf how-to read a cable
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

301609Z Jul 04
C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 001920 

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/UBI HOLLIDAY
STATE ALSO FOR EB/TRA/WALKLET
USEU FOR KESSLER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/30/2014
TAGS: EAIR EU NL
SUBJECT: CIVAIR: KLM SEES NO ECONOMIC RATIOANLE FOR
CABOTAGE DEMAND


Classified By: Ambassador Clifford M. Sobel for reasons 1.5(b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 001920

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/UBI HOLLIDAY
STATE ALSO FOR EB/TRA/WALKLET
USEU FOR KESSLER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/30/2014
TAGS: EAIR EU NL
SUBJECT: CIVAIR: KLM SEES NO ECONOMIC RATIOANLE FOR
CABOTAGE DEMAND


Classified By: Ambassador Clifford M. Sobel for reasons 1.5(b) and (d).


1. (U) On July 29 Ambassador Sobel and econoff (note taker)
met with KLM
President and CEO Leo van Wijk. Ambassador Sobel asked van
Wijk his thoughts
on the failure to achieve a first-phase U.S.-EU air services
agreement. The
Ambassador also steered the conversation to Commissioner
DePalacio's calls for
bi-lateral open skies agreement denunciations, as well as the
fledgling Dutch
air marshal program.

First-Phase Agreement
--------------

2. (C) Van Wijk regretted that the U.S. and EU could not
reach a first-phase
agreement. He said KLM and the GONL favored an agreement.
Van Wijk was
baffled by some member states' demands for cabotage. Van
Wijk mused that
Virgin Atlantic might have long term objectives vis a vis the
U.S. market, and
could want cabotage rights. For the rest of Europe's
airlines, van Wijk stated,
"there is no commercial sense behind cabotage." British
Airways, (BA) strategy
is to postpone an agreement as long as possible, as they have
the most to lose,
van Wijk said. He opined that, together, BA and Virgin are
influencing the
UK's position. Also, Director General for Transport Francois
Lamoureux may
have believed that a first-phase agreement now would leave
the EU with no
leverage for later negotiations.

Denunciation
--------------

3. (U) This month the European Commission threatened a
lawsuit challenging the
GONL's open skies agreement with the U.S. Van Wijk, like
post's working level
Ministry of Transport contacts, did not seem overly
concerned. He (and they)
pointed out that any court case could take a year to decide,
and uniquely, the
US-NL open skies pact has a two-year termination clause. The
Dutch would have
to denounce the agreement in 2007 at the earliest. Van Wijk
did not understand
why DePalacio had decided to resurrect agreement
denunciation, saying "it is a
no-win situation" and leaves her successor in a difficult
position. Van Wijk
doubts the argument that the Commission's denunciation
demands will cause
recalcitrant member states to sign on to a first-phase
agreement.


4. (C) Van Wijk said his Air France counterpart, Jean-Cyril
Spinetta was also
publicly displeased with DePalacio's denunciation letters.
Dutch Minister of
Transport Karla Peijs and Spinetta have consulted on open
skies. Spinetta was
recently elected chairman of the International Air Transport
Association.

Air Marshals
--------------

5. (C) After months of negotiations with the Dutch airlines
and the pilots
union, on July 1 the GONL began a six-month trial air
marshals program. Van
Wijk indicated the program was proceeding uneventfully.
Dutch air marshals are
Israeli trained. In the case of a suspect flight (a la
Paris-LA last
December),the government determines whether to assign a
marshal, but the
airline must approve. Otherwise, the airline could (and van
Wijk insinuated,
KLM would) simply cancel a suspect flight.
SOBEL
SOBEL