29 nations ink declaration against EU carbon fees

MOSCOW - A total of 29 countries inked Wednesday in Moscow a joint declaration opposing a European scheme that forces all airlines to pay for their carbon emissions.

The declaration was issued after an international conference on cutting greenhouse gas emissions with 33 participating countries.

The declaration envisages a basket of retaliatory measures to the EU Emission Trading Scheme (ETS), including allowing any country to introduce any measures in line with national laws to either completely scrap the EU ETS or to postpone it.

Ji Yuan, an official from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), told Xinhua that the EU's unilateral decision to levy carbon emissions fees on all airlines is unacceptable for China.

The Moscow declaration is aimed at forcing EU to stop its plan of carbon charges, Ji said.

According to Ji, the EU's 2012 cap is set at 97 percent of airlines' average emission from 2004 to 2006 and will fall to 95 percent in the 2013-2020 period. In 2012, 85 percent of the airlines' permits will be handed out for free, while 15 percent will be sold at auction.

Ji said standard of the EU cap is obsolete due to increasing flights to Europe in recent years and most of the countries have to pay carbon fees according to the standard.

The EU carbon fees are disguised carbon taxes, Ji said, adding that EU, as a regional bloc, has no right to levy tax on other countries under international treaties on air travels.

In February, China's air regulator CAAC banned Chinese airlines from complying with the EU scheme and from increasing fares or other passenger charges because of the EU scheme.

Although the carbon fees are effective, the money will not be collected until April 30, 2013, and China has added its voice to a growing global protest ahead of the collection date.

Russia echoed China in the meeting. Deputy Minister of Transport Valery Okulov said on Wednesday that Moscow might impose restrictions on European airlines' trans-Siberia flights.

He said that Russia could cut the frequency of the EU airlines' flights and create preferences for EU competitors from China, Japan and other Asian countries.

Okulov also warned that Russia could legally ban the country's airlines from participating in the ETS.

The draft law has already been submitted to Russia's State Duma, or the lower house of parliament, Okulov said.

Russian Transportation Minister Igor Levitin also said Russia holds same stance with China on the ETS issue.

"I think it would be premature to include civil aviation in the ETS. It is necessary to suspend the application of the (EU) directive regarding airlines of non-EU member countries until an elaboration of a coordinated position," Levitin said.

"We think that carbon emission duties and other environmental protection measures must be a decision taken by consensus, within the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization)," he added.