newstodate.aero
Dec 01, 2010 (newstodate): At long last, Russia seems committed to abolishing the devastating charges levied on western airlines operating flight over Siberia on the polar traffic lanes.
The solution will a trade-off by Russia of the overflight charges for accession to the World Trade Organization, which is a high-priority goal for Russia since 1993 with it first placed its application for membership.
The issue will be formally closed at the forthcoming EU-Russia summit in Brussels scheduled for December 7, 2010.
A solution was actually negotiated already in 2006, but Russia never signed the protocol that would see the end of overflight charges in phases, to be fully abolished by 2011.
Estimates are the western airline using the trans-polar lanes over Russia have so far been paying around 400 mio US dollars in royalties to Aeroflot, collecting the tax on behalf of the Russian state.
The solution will a trade-off by Russia of the overflight charges for accession to the World Trade Organization, which is a high-priority goal for Russia since 1993 with it first placed its application for membership.
The issue will be formally closed at the forthcoming EU-Russia summit in Brussels scheduled for December 7, 2010.
A solution was actually negotiated already in 2006, but Russia never signed the protocol that would see the end of overflight charges in phases, to be fully abolished by 2011.
Estimates are the western airline using the trans-polar lanes over Russia have so far been paying around 400 mio US dollars in royalties to Aeroflot, collecting the tax on behalf of the Russian state.