Brussels, 23/07/2004 (Agence Europe) - Following the European Commission's decision on Tuesday on the Open Skies Agreements (see EUROPE of 21 July, p.8), the US Mission to the EU has issued a statement in which the United States describe the Commission's decision as a 'Council of Ministers' rejection of the first-step agreement developed by US and Commission negotiators' warning that 'termination of the agreements would call into question the legal basis for the airline alliances'. The United States 'remains committee to liberalising transatlantic aviation. We continue to assess the best way to achieve that objective… We continue to believe that the best way to move forward is a step-by-step approach, building on the foundation of the current open skies agreements.'