USG-OWNED OR -OPERATED AIRCRAFT ON THE EU ETS LIST

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001060 SENSITIVE SIPDIS EEB/TRA/OTP FOR MEGAN WALKLET-TIGHE EUR/ERA FOR MATTHEW BEH USEU BRUSSELS FOR PEG CATON FAA API FOR JENNIFER KILEO FAA AEA FOR KURT EDWARDS MONTREAL PASS TO ICAO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAIR ECON SENV KGHG EUN SUBJECT: USG-OWNED OR -OPERATED AIRCRAFT ON THE EU ETS LIST REF: (A) ROME 01029 (B) STATE 89892 ROME 00001060 001.2 OF 002 - - - - - Summary - - - - - ¶1. (U) Summary. Post received responses to the demarche in Reftel B from officials at the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, ENAC (Italy's civil aviation administration),and the Ministry of the Environment, and Land and Sea Safeguards. All officials agreed that Italy had no power to remove a carrier from the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) list and said this must be addressed by the European Commission. All officials agreed that U.S. government flights should be exempted from the EU ETS, per prevailing international aviation custom and per Annex 1 of the EU's own directive, but it remains unclear as to how that exemption will be established. It is possible that the GOI will require a declaration and documentation from the Embassy to demonstrate the U.S. Navy's exemption from the EU ETS. Post requests Department guidance on this (para 6). End Summary. - - - - - - - - - Response Details - - - - - - - - - ¶2. (U) Post received a response to the demarche from Mara Angeloni, a knowledgeable Italian Environment Ministry expert who participates in almost all United Nations climate negotiations, and who also follows climate issues at the EU level. Angeloni said the list was compiled at the EU level from information available to Eurocontrol and that no member states could intervene in this matter. She hypothesized that the U.S. Navy was included in the list because Navy flights in the past had flight plan codes indicating a civilian component. (Annex 1 to the EU directive states that Military flights using civil registered aircraft and civil flights performed by military aircraft are not exempted from the EU ETS.) ¶3. (U) Angeloni said a solution was clearly necessary and may be possible at the national level. She said that the Environment Ministry is already in discussions with the EU to establish a solution that would be acceptable to all member countries. Angeloni said a possible solution could be allowing exempt government operators, such as the Navy, to provide a declaration and documentation demonstrating exemption to the national government administering flights by that operator. ¶4. (U) Paolo Sappino, in the office of Airports and Air Navigation at the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, and Girolamo Di Gregorio, of ENAC, also discussed the issue with Post. They insisted that implementation of the EU ETS in Italy is being managed by the Environment Ministry and that neither the Transport Ministry nor ENAC is involved at this time. However, they also said that they agree with everything said by Ms. Angeloni. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Comment and Request for Guidance - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶5. (SBU) All Italian officials with whom Post spoke agree in principle with the USG position, but the GOI does not appear willing to ask the EU to alter the list. It seems unlikely that there will be any real attempt to force USG-operated flights to be governed by the EU ETS, but the suggestion that these flights must demonstrate exemption by presenting additional documentation, other than that normally provided in the course of operation, threatens to add another level of bureaucracy to USG flight operations. ¶6. (SBU) Additionally, if it is determined that documentation and a declaration must be provided to the administering member state, it is unclear what channels would be used to provide this. Per ref B, Post requested that all future GOI communications with regard to these operators be conducted through the Embassy. Do Washington agencies have any views on: 1) the acceptability of the Embassy's submitting such a declaration/documentation to the GOI and 2) whether it should be transmitted through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs via diplomatic note, or directly and more informally to the Environment Ministry? Post requests Department guidance on this, for use in further discussion of this issue with GOI officials. ROME 00001060 002.2 OF 002 THORNE