Alitalia must not become a non-EU citizen. It is Brussels that wants it. The European Commission has asked our country to ensure that - in the context of the operation underway with Etihad, the Abu Dhabi giant - effective control of the former national airline "remains in EU hands".
"Not only must it have majority European ownership - said Helen Kearns, spokeswoman for EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas -, but its control must also remain in EU hands".
The spokeswoman clarified that the request refers to the provisions of EU regulation 1008/2008: "It is up to the Italian authorities, who have granted the license to operate, to ensure that control remains in European hands".
And since not trusting is better, the EU executive also specified that they could ask the Italian authorities for documents proving the non-violation of EU rules in the Alitalia-Etihad operation.
