No deal in new EU-US air data talks

BRUSSELS - Top European and US officials failed to reach agreement on Monday on replacing a deal to share air passenger data which is due to expire on September 30, European and US officials said.

Under post-9/11 anti-terrorism arrangements, European airlines supply US authorities with information on passengers entering the United States including their name, address, payment details and telephone numbers.

An EU court struck down the existing deal on a legal technicality in May but gave the European Union and the United States until September 30 to replace it.

"There still are legal and technical aspects to work on," one EU official told Reuters after a second round of talks held by videoconference.

"We are moving forward, we still hope there will be an agreement by the end of September," European Commission's justice spokesman Friso Roscam Abbing said. A further round of talks will be held on Thursday or Friday, he said.

"We're bearing in mind the September 30 deadline," a US official told Reuters, saying officials had made progress towards an agreement.

US Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff called last month for greater access to EU passenger data.

The EU has said there is not enough time for negotiations on more data access at present and urged Washington to accept merely a change in how the deal is framed legally.

"We have asked that the substance of the (current) agreement be preserved," EU Justice and Security Commissioner Franco Frattini told EU lawmakers last week. "The US expressed a caveat on this request, but my hope is that they will accept."

Under existing rules, airlines face fines of US$6000 ($9158) per passenger if they do not share information.

If no agreement is reached by September 30, airlines will continue to send data requested by the United States but without the safeguards provided by the deal, Frattini said last week.

Passengers' privacy rights would therefore not be sufficiently protected -- potentially sparking complaints by travellers, he added.

- REUTERS