KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is ready to further expand the scope of Asean Multilateral Agreement on Air Services, to include the Asean cities by signing the Asean Multilateral Agreement on the Full Liberalisation of Passenger Air Services and its two protocols in Brunei, today.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha, who is attending the 16th Asean Transport Minister Meeting, said the agreement and its protocols would allow designated airlines of a Asean member state to provide air services from any city with international airport in its territory, to any other city with international airport in the territory of the other member state and vice-versa.
He also called on Asean member states to work closely in emphasising the need for concerted efforts in the region, to effectively address the pressing road safety issues and tasked the Asean Multisectoral Road Safety Special Working Group to begin preparation for the Asean Regional Road Safety Strategy Plan 2011-2020.
This would cover the strategic framework for cooperation among the member states and its policy guidelines, he said in a statement yesterday.
Kong said this plan should be aligned with the United Nations Resolution on the Decade of Action on Road Safety and the Moscow Declaration of the first Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in 2009.
“During the meeting, Asean Transport Ministers also welcomed the endorsement of the Master Plan on Asean Connectivity (MPAC) by the Asean leaders at the 17th Asean Summit held in October,” he added.
On the development of the Asean Single Aviation Market (Asam), Kong said the Asam would include air services liberalisation, aviation safety, aviation security, air traffic management, civil aviation technology, aviation environment protection, air transport regulatory framework and human resource development as its elements. — Bernama