Twenty-third Meeting of the U.S.-EU Joint Committee Record of Meeting

Twenty-third Meeting of the U.S.-EU Joint Committee

Record of Meeting

1. The 23rd meeting of the U.S.-EU Joint Committee was held on 3 and 4 December 2020. For the first time, and as a consequence of the COVID-19 global pandemic, this meeting was held virtually. The list of participants is included in Attachment 1, the approved meeting agenda in Attachment 2, and the subsequently-approved action agenda in Attachment 3.

Adoption of the Record of Meeting of the previous Joint Committee

2. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Record of Meeting of the twenty-second Joint Committee was signed via correspondence on 13 and 16 November 2020.

Review of the Action Agenda of the previous Joint Committee 

3. Both delegations reviewed the progress made on the various action items since the 22nd meeting of the U.S.-EU Joint Committee. The delegations concurred that the Action Agenda, introduced at the last meeting, is a useful tool and will be kept as an ongoing feature of the Joint Committee. 

Implementation of the Agreement

Entry into force of the 2007 ATA

4. Both delegations welcomed the entry into force of the 2007 U.S.-EU Air Transport Agreement (ATA), and underlined their commitment to proceed with the entry into force of the 2010 Protocol, the 2011 Four Part ATA with Iceland and Norway, and the 2019 Wet Lease Agreement.

Article 21

5. The EU delegation recalled its view that it has acted in good faith and fulfilled all the necessary requirements set out under paragraph 4 of Article 21 of the ATA, and that further development foreseen in said Article remained one of its priorities.  The U.S. delegation reiterated its position that Regulation (EU) 598/2014 does not satisfy the requirements of Article 21. The delegations decided to hold a technical meeting on the matter and to reflect this decision in the Action Agenda.

Croatia Protocols

6. The EU delegation provided an update with respect to the procedures surrounding signature of the Protocols and thanked the U.S. delegation for the good cooperation for preparing the authentication of the French language version, to be effected through an exchange of letters as set out in the Joint Declaration. The U.S. delegation underlined its commitment to sign the Protocols as soon as possible once all parties are ready to do so. To facilitate the U.S. internal procedures, the U.S. delegation asked the EU to share the communications from the Member States, confirming that the Council is authorised to express the consent of the Member States to be bound by the Protocols, prior to signature. The delegations decided to add a follow-up action point to the Action Agenda.  

Dispute resolution

7. The EU delegation reiterated its concerns with respect to the use of unilateral instruments for disputes covered by the ATA, and underscored its view that the mechanisms provided for by the ATA are the only acceptable way to resolve such disputes. The EU delegation further made a detailed statement on how the arbitral award of 9 December 1978 between the United States and France underpins the EU’s position. The EU delegation argued that the tribunal made a fundamentally important reserve to the principle of legitimacy of countermeasures, which only applies unless the contrary results from an obligation under an agreement. As, in the EU’s view, Article 19 of the ATA sets out a complete and exhaustive procedure for the resolution of disputes between the parties, the right of either party to resort to unilateral measures is exhaustively regulated. The EU delegation reaffirmed its position that there is no scope for the parties to the ATA to take countermeasures outside the framework of Article 19 of the agreement. While reserving on its responses to these arguments regarding the 1978 decision, the U.S. delegation restated its position that there is no conflict between the U.S. or EU domestic mechanisms and the ATA dispute resolution procedures, and that the ATA does not preclude the use of unilateral measures consistent with international law. The U.S. delegation further stated that, as both sides have well articulated their views on this question in the abstract, there is unlikely to be further progress addressing the issue in the absence of a live dispute. The delegations decided to add an item to the Action Agenda in order to hold further technical consultations on the matter. 

Regulatory and policy updates

EU Renewable Energy Directive (REDII)

8. The EU delegation updated on the REDII in the context of the European Green Deal and in particular on the objective to foster the use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). The U.S. delegation shared its experience with SAF and suggested that both Parties remain in close contact in this domain. 

Regulation 261/2004

9. The EU delegation provided an update with respect to the status of the revision of Regulation 261/2004 based on the Commission proposal of 2013. The U.S. delegation underscored its interest in closely following legislative developments, in particular related to no-show policies. The EU delegation clarified that while not including a full ban of no-show policies, the Commission proposal ensures that passengers may not be denied boarding on a return journey even if they have not used the outbound flight. The delegations decided to maintain an information point on the Action Agenda.

Aviation security and safety

10. The 30th Meeting of the EU‐U.S. Transportation Security Cooperation Group (TSCG) was held virtually on 23 and 30 November 2020 (technical meetings) and 3 December 2020 (capstone meeting) where representatives from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Directorate General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE) of the European Commission discussed a range of areas of transport security. Discussions focused on surface (land) transport, developments in aviation security such as technology, air cargo, measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic, modular recognition of screening methodologies in select locations, drones and continued cooperation in multi-lateral fora such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the Quadrilateral Group with Canada and Australia (QUAD). The two sides confirmed their commitment to continue their close cooperation in transport security and identified specific joint actions to that end.

CORSIA and EU ETS

11. The U.S. delegation reiterated its support for CORSIA as the exclusive global market-based measure to reduce aviation emissions and expressed appreciation for the common effort taken by the EU and the U.S. to overcome challenges to CORSIA’s integrity by some countries in ICAO. Outlining the domestic implementation of CORSIA, the United States informed the EU of its voluntary programme, under which 98% of civil aviation emissions were accounted. The United States further informed that to move toward mandatory implementation would require regulatory action, with further decisions regarding the next step but that it could not yet provide specific elements or dates.

12. The EU delegation informed that the EU would implement CORSIA through a revision of the EU ETS while preserving the environmental integrity of the EU climate objectives and the commitments made in the context of the European Green Deal. The Commission is currently preparing a legislative proposal for adoption by June 2021. The U.S. delegation cautioned to avoid duplications and, noting that in its view the EU ETS should apply to intra-EU flights only, informed about the close attention that it pays to the EU ETS’ application to U.S. operators. Both delegations concurred on the importance of continued close cooperation in ICAO.

Brexit

13. The U.S. delegation read a statement (Attachment 4) pertaining, inter alia, to the application of the U.S.-EU ATA to U.S.-UK civil aviation relations during the transition period.  Both delegations confirmed that, upon the expiration of the transitional period on 1 January 2021, the ATA would cease to have any application to U.S.-UK civil aviation relations. The U.S. statement noted that, upon this date, U.S.-UK relations would be governed by the terms of the new U.S.-UK bilateral agreement instead. 

Crew Visa reciprocity 

14. The EU delegation expressed its regret that EU airline crews are still not exempted from U.S. visa requirements. The EU noted that visa waivers for air crews are common practice and in line with Annex 9 of the Chicago Convention. Such visa waivers are also a courtesy extended to U.S. crews entering the EU. In response, the U.S. delegation stated that visa-free travel to the United States from the EU is limited to certain tourism and business travellers. The EU delegation underlined its discontent with this lack of reciprocity, which results in significant cost for EU operators, and expressed its view that the issue should be addressed.

COVID-19

15. The two delegations updated each other on their respective COVID-19 relief and recovery measures. Both delegations underlined the importance of the transatlantic market for the recovery of international air traffic, stressed that mitigation measures must be science- and evidence-based and were in agreement on the need for continued cooperation. To that end, the delegations decided to designate contact points. 

Action Agenda

16. The Parties decided to steer the preparations of the 24th Joint Committee with the enclosed action agenda, which was finalized after the meeting (Attachment 3).

Signed: 

Attachment 1

List of Participants

EU Delegation

European Commission

1. Mr Filip Cornelis, DG MOVE, Director E “Aviation”

2. Mr Carlos Bermejo Acosta, DG MOVE, Head of Unit E2“Aviation Agreements”

3. Mr Georg Hasslinger, DG MOVE, Policy Officer, Unit E2 “Aviation Agreements”

4. Mr Johannes Muhowicz, DG MOVE, Trainee, Unit E2 “Aviation Agreements”

5. Mr Knut Simonsson, Legal Service

European External Action Service

6. Gzim Ocakoglu, First Counsellor, Mobility and Transport, EU Delegation to the US

7. Klaus Winkler, Head of EU Office at ICAO

EU Member States 

8. Ms Verena Cozac-Brendl, Civil Aviation Authority/L1 – Strategy and international affairs, Austria

9. Ms Cristina Mucina-Bauer, Civil Aviation Authority/L1 – Strategy and international affairs, Austria

10. Ms Janneke Tijsseling-Kolk, Sr Policy Officy, Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, The Netherlands 

11. Ms Ana Cristina Pais, ANAC Portuguese Civil Aviation Authority, Portugal

12. Ms Fernanda Bandarra, ANAC Portuguese Civil Aviation Authority, Portugal

13. Mr David Benito, Direction Générale Aviation Civile, Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité, Espagne (replaced by Mr. Llorente at some point)

14. Ms Païvi Jamsa, Chief Specialist, Air Transport Markets unit, Services Dpt, Ministry of Transport and Communications Finland

15. Ms Leila Iikkanen, Legal Adviser, Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom

16. Mr Olivier Meynot, Chargé de mission Accords européens de transport aérien, Direction Générale de l’Aviation Civile, France

17. Mr Sam Weissen, Transport Counselor, Luxemburg

18. Ms Klara Fogarasi, Counsellor, Ministry of Innovation and Technology, Hungary

19. Mr Liam Keogh, Deputy Director General of Aviation, Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Aviation Services Division, Ireland

20. Ms Annemarie Smith, Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Aviation Services Division, Ireland

21. Ms Maria Teresa Lioi, Senior Officer, Focal point for EU External Relations and Economic Regulation Matters, ENAC (Italian Civil Aviation Authority)

22. Mr Mark De Laurentiis, ENAC (Italian Civil Aviation Authority)

23. Ms Jana-Lisa Wendering, Assistant Head of Division LF 12 – International Air Transport – Civil Aviation Department Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) Germany

24. Ms Ingrid Almén, Senior Advisor, Aviation & Maritime Department, Swedish Transport Agency, Sweden

25. Mr Tomas Vokaty, Civil Aviation Dpt, Ministry of Transport, Czech Republic

26. Ms Ann-Kristin Hanssen, Senior Adviser, Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications, Norway

27. Mr Oyvind Thorstein Ek, Deputy Director General, Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications, Norway

Stakeholders

28. Mr Bastiaan De Bruijne, General Councel, ACI Europe

29. Ms Karine Gely, ECA Executive Board Member, European Cockpit Association

30. Mr Michiel Laumans, Coordinator International Affairs Air France/KLM

31. Mr Frank Prillevitz, VP Government and Industry Affairs/KLM

32. Mr Koen Vermeir, Director Aeropolitical & Industry Affairs, AIRE (Airlines International Representation in Europe)

33. Ms Stefanie Erdmann, Senior Public Policy Manager, DHL/European Cargo Alliance

34. Mr Patrick Jeanne, Sr Manager Government and Industry Relations, Cargolux/European Cargo Alliance

35. Ms Stefanie Zugmann, Sr Manager International & Aeropolitical Affairs, Austrian 

36. Dr Markus Broich, Airbus

37. Mr Jörg Meinke, Head of EU Liaison Office, Lufthansa Group

38. Mr Alan Campbell, Group Manager International Relations of IAG

39. Mr Arnaud Camus, Assistant VP International Affairs, Air France

40. Mr Eoin Coates, Head of Aviation, European Transport Worker’s Association (ETF)

41. Mr Timo Koskinen, Manager, Government and Institutional relations, Finnair

42. Ms Anna Wilson, SAS, Scandinavian Airlines System

United States Delegation 

U.S. Government

U.S. Department of State

1. Mr. Hugo Yon, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Transportation Affairs (EB/TRA)

2. Mr. Rick Yoneoka, Director, Office of Aviation Negotiations, EB/TRA  

3. Mr. Dave Williams, Deputy Director, Office of Aviation Negotiations, EB/TRA

4. Ms. Vanessa Guest, Deputy Director, Office of Transportation Policy, EB/TRA

5. Ms. Bonnie Mace, Transportation Officer, Office of Transportation Policy, EB/TRA

6. Ms. Kristen Erthum, Transportation Officer, Office of Transportation Policy, EB/TRA

7. Mr. Jason McInerney, International Civil Aviation Officer, Office of Aviation Negotiations, EB/TRA 

8. Ms. Meeta Yajnik, International Civil Aviation Officer, Office of Aviation Negotiations, EB/TRA

9. Mr. Jesse Tampio, Senior Attorney-Adviser, Office of the Legal Adviser

10. Ms. Kathleen Serpa, Management Analyst

11. Ms. Alexandra Teisan, Management Assistant

12. Ms. Erika Carlsen, USEU Economic Officer

13. Mr. Thomas Wotka, Economic Officer, Office of European Affairs, EUR/ERA

14. Mr. John Thompson, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Environment, OES

15. Mr. Trigg Talley, Director, Office of Global Change, OES/EGC

16. Ms. Christine Dragisic, Foreign Affairs Officer, Office of Global Change, OES/EGC

17. Ms. Molly Peters-Stanley, Foreign Affairs Officer, Office of Global Change, OES/EGC

18. Mr. Don Locke, Division Chief, ACS/EUR

U.S. Department of Transportation

19. Mr. Benjamin Taylor, Assistant Director for Negotiations, Office of International Aviation

20. Mr. Joe Landart, Air Services Negotiator, Office of International Aviation

21. Ms. Jennifer Thibodeau, Senior Attorney, Office of the Assistant General Counsel for International Law

22. Ms. Kristen Gatlin, Air Services Negotiator, Office of International Aviation

U.S. Department of Commerce

23. Mr. Eugene Alford, International Transportation Specialist, International Trade Administration

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

24. Mr. Bailey Edwards, Assistant Administrator for Policy, International Affairs, and Environment

25. Mr. Kevin Welsh, Executive Director, Office of Environment and Energy

26. Ms. Minh Favila, Senior Representative to the EU, Office of International Affairs

27. Mr. Dan Williams, Senior International Advisor, Office of Environment and Energy

28. Ms. Renee Pocius, Foreign Affairs Specialist, Africa, Europe and Middle East, Office of International Affairs

Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

29. Mr. Paul Fujimura, TSA Liaison to State 

30. Mr. Robert Vente, Regional Director, International Operations

31. Ms. Katie Logisz, Regional Bureau Chief, International Operations

32. Ms. Angela Mankowski, Europe Senior Desk Officer, International Operations

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

33. Mr. Philip Warker, DHS liaison

U.S. Industry

34. Ms. Cecilia Bethke, Managing Director, International Affairs, Airlines for America (A4A) 

35. Mr. Reese Davidson, Manager, Staff Counsel International, JetBlue

36. Mr. Paul H. Doell, Director of Government Affairs, National Air Carriers Association

37. Ms. Rosalind Ellingsworth, Independent Pilots Association

38. Mr. Shawn Gray, Representative, Allied Pilots Association

39. Mr. Brian Hedberg, Senior Counsel, FedEx

40. Mr. Conor McAuliffe, Managing Director, European & Industry Affairs, United Airlines

41. Mr. Kevin Montgomery, Vice President, Polar Air Cargo

42. Ms. Julie Oettinger, Managing Director, International Regulatory and Policy, Delta Air Lines

43. Mr. Russ Pommer, VP, Global Regulatory Affairs, Atlas Air

44. Mr. David M. Semanchik, Senior Attorney & Regulatory Counsel, Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), International

45. Mr. Dontai L. Smalls, Vice President, Global Public Affairs, United Parcel Service (UPS)

46. Ms. Rachel Tristan, Senior Director of Government and Political Affairs, Airports Council International – North America

47. Mr. Robert Wirick, Managing Director International Government Affairs, American Airlines

Attachment 2

Agenda 

Day 1, 3 December 2020, 15:00-19:00

• Administrative section

1. 1. • Introduction and adoption of agenda of JC23
      • Adoption and signature of the Record of Meeting of JC22 
      • Review of the of the Action Agenda of JC22 

• Implementation of the Agreement

1. 1. • Entry into force of the Air Transport Agreement
      • Article 21
      • Croatia Protocols

• ATA and unilateral instruments (IATFCPA, 2019/712)

Break

• Regulatory and policy updates

1. • EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED II)
   • Aviation security, aviation safety, SES2+ (in writing), Regulation 261/2004
   • CORSIA implementation in the EU and US, and update on the EU ETS 
   • Brexit 

• Crew visa reciprocity

• Any other business

Day 2, 4 December 2020, 15:00-19:00

• COVID-19

1. • Relief measures: 
     • Presentations of the respective immediate relief measures adopted, and support measures provided to the industry and workers
   • Recovery measures 
     • Recovery measures adopted and being planned to help the sector
     • Health and border measures 

• Concluding remarks and Action Agenda for the next JC
• Government-to-Government Session

Attachment 3

Action agenda 

developed at the 23rd EU-US Joint Committee – 3-4 December 2020

1. Implementation of the Agreement

• EU, United States, Norway, and Iceland to update each other on the status of their internal procedures to allow for the entry into force of the 2010 Protocol, the Four-Part Agreement and the Wet leasing Agreement. 
• EU and United States to organize a technical meeting for the purpose of sharing their respective positions on Article 21 of the ATA. 
• EU, United States, Norway, and Iceland to update each other on the status of their internal procedures to allow for the swift signing of the Protocols for the formal accession of Croatia to the ATA. 

2. Dispute Resolution

• EU and United States to organize a technical meeting on their respective domestic instruments concerning anti-competitive practices and their interaction with the ATA, in order to present a summary of their positions at the next Joint Committee. 

3. COVID-19 

• EU and United States to designate/confirm contact points to work closely together, both bilaterally and at the level of ICAO, on the restoration of transatlantic air traffic and related aspects of the transatlantic aviation relationship. 

4. Environment

• EU to coordinate and present responses to the U.S. communications with regard to Member States’ environmental taxes and U.S. requests to provide information in accordance with Article 15(2). 

5. No-Show Policy 

• EU to continue to provide updates and indicative planning for the revision of Regulation EC 261/2004, and on accompanying interpretive guidelines. 

Attachment 4

U.S. Verbal Statement on 

Brexit and U.S.-EU ATAs

• The U.S. delegation would like to make a statement for the record on the legal implications of Brexit with respect to the 2007 U.S.-EU Air Transport Agreement, as amended and the 2011 Four-Part ATA (“U.S.-EU ATAs”).
• The U.S. delegation takes note of the position of the European Union that EU law continues to apply in and to the UK during the transition period, and that such law includes, inter alia, the U.S.-EU ATAs.
• Although the United States does not share this view as a legal matter, during the transition period the United States has endeavored, and will continue to endeavor, wherever possible, to afford the UK the same treatment it would receive, in this case, if the U.S.-EU ATAs applied to it, subject to relevant legal and policy considerations. 
• Once the transition period ends, the United States shares the view that the U.S.-EU ATAs will have no application or relevance to U.S.-UK civil aviation relations.
• We expect that, for all practical purposes and to maintain the current transatlantic market, the status quo for the UK will remain until the transition period ends.  Preparations are under way to ensure that, after that date, the air transport agreement that the United States and the UK have negotiated bilaterally will govern U.S.-UK civil aviation relations. 
• We look forward to hearing what the future UK-EU relationship will be, and how it may affect the transatlantic and global aviation market.