Brussels, 13/02/2003 (Agence Europe) - The European Union and USA will be holding a meeting at a senior civil servant level on Monday and Tuesday in Brussels with a view to defusing the legal conflict between US demands to strengthen inspections of passengers on trans-Atlantic flights and European rules guaranteeing protection of private data. Despite the terseness of this affair (in which Washington has for a short time been threatening to impose fines on airlines that refuse to cooperate because of fear of infringing European legislation) there is hope on both sides that the Director General of External Relations at the Commission, Guy Legras and the Vice Commissioner at US Customs, Douglas Browning, can reach an amicable solution that is definitive and acceptable" on both sides of the Atlantic. On the US side, it is said that the two leaders could make a public declaration on Tuesday, whereas the Europeans "hope to have an agreement and, in any case, the desire to try and resolve the dispute in this complex but important area". Brussels has stated that there are possibilities but that this will not be easy because the USA wants a maximum of information and the time will run out in February for imposing fines as the USA intends. Brussels is also of the opinion that they should not harmonise European and US legislation but find common criteria or at least criteria that is compatible. Brussels is for the time being refusing to entertain the idea of passengers being able to (at their own consent) and in writing to divulge information, while the US authorities would make a commitment to not divulge this information to other parties.