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“UNITED STATES-GERMAN OPEN SKIES AGREEMENT” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the Senate section on pages S1453-S1454 on Feb. 29, 1996.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
UNITED STATES-GERMAN OPEN SKIES AGREEMENT
Mr. PRESSLER. Mr. President, I am delighted to inform the Senate that today the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany signed an open skies agreement which will liberalize air service between our two countries. I am also pleased to advise my colleagues that the United States and Germany initialed a Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement
[BASA] which will greatly enhance safety coordination between the Federal Aviation Administration [FAA] and its German counterpart agency.
The United States-German open skies agreement is a great economic victory for both countries and a very welcome development for consumers. In fact, I regard this agreement to be a trade accord of truly historic proportions for both countries. As always is the case where market forces are unleashed, consumers flying between the United States and Germany, as well as passengers connecting in either country for travel to a third country, will benefit enormously. These consumer benefits will include increased choice and competitive air fares.
Mr. President, the United States-German open skies agreement is the product of bold and visionary leadership by two men. I refer to our Secretary of Transportation Federico Pena and German Transport Minister Matthias Wissmann. Secretary Pena had the vision to identify this opportunity and to recognize that competition will be our best ally in opening restrictive European air service markets such as those in the United Kingdom and France. Minister Wissmann had the vision to recognize the economic benefits of an open skies agreement with the United States are a two-way street.
In addition, I want to praise the great work of four men who labored for months to negotiate the fine points of this agreement. For the United States, I commend the outstanding work of Mark Gerchick, DOT's Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs, and John Bylerly, special negotiator for Transportation Affairs at the State Department. For the Germans, I commend the outstanding work of Dr. Jurgen Pfohler, Deputy chief of staff to Minister Wissmann, and Dieter Bartkowski, Director of the Air Transport Section at the German Ministry of Transport. The United States-German open skies agreement is a fitting tribute to their efforts and exemplary public service.
What does the United States-German open skies agreement do in terms of putting aviation relations between our two countries on the firm foundation of market principles? It will allow airlines of both countries to operate to any points in either country, as well as third countries, without limitation. It also liberalizes pricing, charter services and further liberalizes the open skies cargo regime already in place. In short, it allows market demand, not the heavy hands of governments, to decide air service between the United States and Germany.
How will this open skies agreement benefit all U.S. carriers? It will create tremendous new air service opportunities between the United States and Germany in which all U.S. carriers can partake. Also, German airports will provide well-situated gateway opportunities for our carriers to serve points throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the booming Asia-Pacific market. These gateway opportunities offer the double benefit of serving as a means of breaking the bottleneck at London's Heathrow Airport and offering a backdoor to the booming Asia-
Pacific market.
All U.S. carriers also will receive indirect benefits from the United States-German open skies agreement. I predict the United States-German open skies agreement will be an important catalyst for further liberalization of air service opportunities throughout Europe. In fact, I believe this agreement will serve as a template for such liberalization. Hopefully, the United States-German open skies agreement, in combination with open skies agreements we already have with 11 other European nations, will force the United Kingdom and France to come to the alter of air service competition.
Mr. President, let me conclude by saying that today is a very important day in U.S. international aviation policy and U.S. trade policy. It also is an important day in United States-German economic and political relations. Perhaps most important, it is a great day for consumers in both countries.
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