Brussels, 09/01/2007 (Agence Europe) - The United States is unhappy with the proposal brought forward by the European Commission in December to include air transport in the European emissions trading scheme (see EUROPE 9332). That is what Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Affairs John Byerly told press on 9 January. He said the proposal, were it to be adopted and implemented, would “violate” the Chicago Convention on international civil aviation. The European Union had the right to impose such a system on its air companies, but not on foreign ones, he went on, criticising the “unilateral” and “mandatory” nature of the proposal. The United States would prefer to find a global solution to the issue of air emissions within the ICAO, the International Civil Aviation Organisation, Mr Byerly continued, and he added that Washington would use the time needed to go through the legislative procedure to try to convince the EU that this proposal “is not a good thing” for aviation. (hb)