IATA: EU ETS opposition about national sovereignty not money

IATA director of aviation environment Paul Steele said the opposition to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) forwarded by a number of nations is "not about money" but an issue of national sovereignty (Irish Times/Reuters, 12-Jun-2012). 26 nations have formally expressed their opposition to the inclusion of their airlines in the scheme, including the US, Russia, China and India. Several other nations have also joined discussions over potential countermeasures to the ETS. India and China have already barred their carriers from participating in the scheme.

IATA: "[The EU ETS is] no longer an aviation, or climate issue, but a major political issue now. It is no longer an industry cost issue but an issue concerning sovereignty of nations," Paul Steele, director of aviation environment. Source: Reuters, 12-Jun-2012.