An alliance of countries opposed to a carbon tax on airlines is threatening to tear up trade deals with the European Union and impose new taxes on EU carriers, in a sign the world’s first carbon trade war is edging closer.
A meeting has been called for next week by the 26 countries that have been fighting to stop Brussels charging airlines flying in or out of the EU for their carbon emissions.
More than 20 countries are sending representatives to the meeting which starts on Tuesday, with the US, India and China expected to play an active role. The US delegation will be led by Julie Oettinger, assistant administrator for policy, international affairs and environment at the Federal Aviation Administration.
A discussion paper prepared for the meeting, and seen by the Financial Times, shows the group will consider 11 retaliatory measures against the EU’s move to include all big airlines in its emissions trading system.
The measures include re-opening existing trade agreements in sectors other than aviation to put “pressure on EU industries”; imposing new charges on European airlines flying into non-EU countries; suspending current and future negotiations about EU airline requests for new routes or airport destinations; and possibly enacting legislation to ban their airlines from complying with the EU law.
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