Brussels, 21/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - It will not be possible for European ministers to sign the EU-Ukraine aviation agreement at the Transport Council on 5 June next because of disagreements between Spain and the United Kingdom over Gibraltar (see below). This issue is also delaying a Council agreement on the air passenger rights review.
EU-Ukraine agreement pending. On Tuesday 20 May, European Commissioner for Transport Siim Kallas was in Kiev where he confirmed that the aviation agreement with Ukraine was ready but that the ratification process had not been easy: “This is not a problem between the EU and Ukraine and was more of a problem with Gibraltar”. The Greek Presidency is currently attempting to obtain a majority vote at the Council on the subject and thus consensus between the United Kingdom and Spain so that the agreement can be signed on 5 June. The Coreper meeting on Friday 23 June and the working group meeting the day before could prove decisive on whether ratification can be included in the Transport Council agenda.
Same goes for passenger rights. The same scenario is being repeated in the negotiations on the review of air passenger rights. The Greek Presidency would have liked to obtain a general approach on this subject among European ministers at the forthcoming Transport Council. However, there will only be a progress report on the matter, according to one source. Several points are still pending but Gibraltar is, in this case too, one of the thornier subjects that needs to be tackled.
Gibraltar is making life difficult in the aviation related dossiers because the British and Spanish delegations cannot agree on the sovereignty of the airport located on the Mediterranean island near Morocco (there is the question of whether Community law should be applied to this airport as part of the Gibraltar Clause). This tricky situation arises sporadically with varying degrees of intensity, affirmed one diplomatic source, but this time it is holding up an important dossier, the signing of the aviation agreement between the EU and Ukraine. As long as the Spanish and British cannot get their act together, there is little hope of progress in these two aviation dossiers. (MD)