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The UN's aviation body has adopted a statement asserting that international airlines should be exempt from the EU's plans to cap the industry's emissions, raising the prospect of an all-out trade war.
The non-binding working paper was promoted by 26 nations, including China, Russia and the US, at this week's meeting of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in Montreal.
Despite opposition from European members, the ICAO said that the paper has been adopted by "a clear majority", underlining mounting tension over the EU's plan to impose an emissions levy on flights.
Airlines would be compelled under the Aviation Directive to buy permits in the EU's emissions trading scheme (EU ETS) to cover emissions for flights arriving at and departing from the region's airports.
The move, which will come into force in January next year, has incensed non-EU carriers which argue that it is a breach of international treaties and discriminates against airlines furthest away from Europe.
A court case brought to the European Court of Justice by a US trade body was dismissed last month, but countries have turned up the pressure in other ways. The US lower house passed a bill that will impose heavy fines on any of its carriers complying with the scheme, while China put its purchase of 88 Airbus A320 planes on hold in protest.
But, despite the pressure, the EU has repeatedly refused to back down, arguing that regional action is necessary given the sluggish progress to agree a global deal to tackle the aviation sector's emissions, estimated to make up around three per cent of the global total.
The EU's climate action commissioner, Connie Hedegaard, reiterated the region's position last night, saying that ICAO had missed another opportunity to "tell the world when it will table a viable global solution".
"It is disappointing that ICAO discussions once again focus on what states should not do instead of what they should do to curb growing aviation emissions," Hedegaard said in an emailed statement.
"But this decision will affect neither the EU's commitment to working within ICAO to agree on a global solution, nor our adopted legislation to include aviation in the EU ETS."
US non-profit group the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) was quick to point out that the adopted statement is not legally binding and has no obligatory power.
"While the airlines may try to claim this is a Council 'ruling', the ICAO president made very clear this morning that the 'declaration' is simply that - a political expression of a group of countries that their airlines aren't happy about having to comply with pollution controls," said EDF attorney Pamela Campos, who was present at the meeting.
"Any formal legal action would have to follow very different procedures that were not considered today."
Meanwhile, WWF said that the ICAO should put its energies into complying with the legislation rather than trying to block the move.
"Everyone would prefer to see a global deal for aviation but, until this is in place, we need the ETS as the world's first mandatory scheme to tackle aviation emissions," said Samantha Smith, leader of WWF's global climate and energy initiative.
"It should be used to speed up progress towards a global deal, not detract from it, so ICAO should be giving it their full support."
The UN's aviation body has adopted a statement asserting that international airlines should be exempt from the EU's plans to cap the industry's emissions, raising the prospect of an all-out trade war.
The non-binding working paper was promoted by 26 nations, including China, Russia and the US, at this week's meeting of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in Montreal.
Despite opposition from European members, the ICAO said that the paper has been adopted by "a clear majority", underlining mounting tension over the EU's plan to impose an emissions levy on flights.
Airlines would be compelled under the Aviation Directive to buy permits in the EU's emissions trading scheme (EU ETS) to cover emissions for flights arriving at and departing from the region's airports.
The move, which will come into force in January next year, has incensed non-EU carriers which argue that it is a breach of international treaties and discriminates against airlines furthest away from Europe.
A court case brought to the European Court of Justice by a US trade body was dismissed last month, but countries have turned up the pressure in other ways. The US lower house passed a bill that will impose heavy fines on any of its carriers complying with the scheme, while China put its purchase of 88 Airbus A320 planes on hold in protest.
But, despite the pressure, the EU has repeatedly refused to back down, arguing that regional action is necessary given the sluggish progress to agree a global deal to tackle the aviation sector's emissions, estimated to make up around three per cent of the global total.
The EU's climate action commissioner, Connie Hedegaard, reiterated the region's position last night, saying that ICAO had missed another opportunity to "tell the world when it will table a viable global solution".
"It is disappointing that ICAO discussions once again focus on what states should not do instead of what they should do to curb growing aviation emissions," Hedegaard said in an emailed statement.
"But this decision will affect neither the EU's commitment to working within ICAO to agree on a global solution, nor our adopted legislation to include aviation in the EU ETS."
US non-profit group the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) was quick to point out that the adopted statement is not legally binding and has no obligatory power.
"While the airlines may try to claim this is a Council 'ruling', the ICAO president made very clear this morning that the 'declaration' is simply that - a political expression of a group of countries that their airlines aren't happy about having to comply with pollution controls," said EDF attorney Pamela Campos, who was present at the meeting.
"Any formal legal action would have to follow very different procedures that were not considered today."
Meanwhile, WWF said that the ICAO should put its energies into complying with the legislation rather than trying to block the move.
"Everyone would prefer to see a global deal for aviation but, until this is in place, we need the ETS as the world's first mandatory scheme to tackle aviation emissions," said Samantha Smith, leader of WWF's global climate and energy initiative.
"It should be used to speed up progress towards a global deal, not detract from it, so ICAO should be giving it their full support."
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