Turkey and the United States reached agreement on the text of an Open Skies Air Transport Agreement which replaces the existing Air Transport Agreement, following talks March 22-23 in Washington. The Agreement was initialed at the closing plenary meeting of the Turkey-United States Joint Economic Commission March 24 in Washington.

The Turkish delegation, consisting of representatives of the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Transport and Turkish Airlines was lead by Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of Transport A.Tahir Dengiz and the American delegation was headed by Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas White.

The Open Skies Agreement provides conditions of perfect competition and progressive liberalization in civil aviation relations.The Agreement, entails more liberal rules compared to standard civil aviation agreements and provides an environment conducive for cargo and charter services to be carried out conveniently and under conditions of free trade.

The Agreement is expected to open up wide ranging opportunities in air transport services between the two countries. In this context, the conclusion of the said Agreement marks an important step forward in civil aviation relations and should significantly advance the common objective of reviving areas of trade, tourism and cultural exchange.

The Agreement, following its entry into force, will put into effect the cooperation agreement signed between Turkish Airlines and American Airlines on 25 February 2000 in Istanbul. This would eventually increase Turkish Airlines' share in the US market. The Open Skies Agreement will also provide opportunities for other Turkish air carriers to conduct transport services directed to the US.