Brussels, 05/12/2013 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 5 December in Brussels, the Commission was granted a negotiating mandate by the Transport Council for a comprehensive agreement in air transport services with Brazil. Negotiations were begun in March 2011 but were suspended at the request of Brazil, which wanted to review some of the terms of the agreement. This revised negotiating mandate means that negotiations can resume on an agreement that will replace the 15 bilateral agreements currently in force and align Brazilian rules with European legislation. Opening up the respective markets will provide new prospects for investors and will help increase the number of airline connections and lower ticket prices. It is hoped that an agreement can be obtained as soon as possible, ahead of the football World Cup in summer 2014 and the Olympic Games in 2016 and so provide a number of benefits to European travellers to the country. (MD/transl.fl)