US, Japan to hold ‘open skies’ talks Monday

The United States and Japan will hold negotiations aimed at liberalising air traffic, known as “open skies” talks, in Washington next week, an official told AFP Thursday.

The discussions will be held Monday, said Bill Mosley, a Department of Transportation DOT spokesman.

“This is the next round of the talks” that have been held “over the years,” he said, confirming in part a report by the Nikkei business daily.

According to Nikkei, the US and Japan are expected to sign an “open skies” agreement shortly, with the deal possibly initialled in three-day talks due to start Monday in Washington.

Mosley declined to say whether the talks would extend beyond Monday, saying it depended on the circumstances.

He said the State Department leads the US side in the talks that include DOT officials.

In Tokyo Thursday, struggling Japan Airlines was offered a 1.1 billion dollar lifeline from partners led by American Airlines, amid a bidding war with Delta Air Lines for a piece of Asia’s biggest carrier.

American and Delta have both sought a stake in JAL, hoping to expand their Asian operations ahead of the anticipated “open skies” agreement.

http://ph.news.yahoo.com/afp/20091204/tbs-us-japan-aviation-airline-trade-e5c2383.html

 

Category: Japan