Asean, EU seal world's first bloc-to-bloc air transport pact

ASEAN and the European Union (EU) have negotiated the world's first bloc-to-bloc air transport agreement, liberalising air transport by giving airlines of both regions greater opportunities to operate passenger and cargo services, Singapore's Ministry of Transport (MOT) announced on Friday.

Negotiations for the Asean-EU Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement (AE CATA) were completed at the Extraordinary ASEAN-EU Senior Transport Officials Meeting, held virtually on June 2.

"The AE CATA will enhance air connectivity between Asean and Europe and facilitate people-to-people and business exchanges. This will help support economic development in both regions as we work towards recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic," MOT said.

Under the agreement, Asean and EU airlines will be able to fly any number of services between both regions.

In addition, airlines will be able to fly up to 14 weekly passenger services, as well as any number of cargo services, via and beyond to any third country.

"The agreement will help rebuild air connectivity between Asean and Europe which has been decimated by the Covid-19 pandemic and open up new growth opportunities for the aviation industry in both regions," said the Asean and the EU in a joint statement.

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This is the culmination of eight rounds of negotiations that started in October 2016. Singapore led the negotiations for Asean, while the European Commission led the negotiations for the EU.

Asean and the EU will now submit the agreement for legal scrubbing, in preparation for it to be signed at a later date to be confirmed.

Besides the liberalisation of air transport, the agreement also provides for cooperation between both blocs in areas such as aviation safety, air traffic management, consumer protection, and environmental and social issues.

Noting that the EU is already Asean's third largest source of investment and trading partner, Asean secretary-general Lim Jock Hoi said: "The AE CATA would significantly strengthen air connectivity between Asean and Europe and bring both regions even closer together."

European Commissioner for Transport Adina Valean said the agreement "provides essential guarantees of fair competition for our European airlines and industry, while strengthening reciprocal prospects for trade and investment in some of the world's most dynamic markets".

Singapore's Transport Minister S Iswaran called the conclusion of the agreement "a historic achievement and a milestone in our bilateral ties", adding: "It is the first such region-to-region agreement and a statement of commitment by Asean and EU member states to work together to tide over the current Covid-19 crisis, reconnect, and resume cross-border travel."

"It will help boost business confidence and support economic recovery," he added.