OTTAWA, Nov. 11 (Xinhuanet) -- Canadian Transport Minister Jean Lapierre said on Friday that Canada and the United States have reached an "Open Skies" agreement that will liberalize air travel between the two countries.

    "This further liberalization of the Canada-U.S. air transport relationship will allow airlines of both countries to better meet the needs of travelers and shippers," said Lapierre in a press release.

    "It is my hope that this agreement will encourage the development of new markets, new services, lower prices and greater competition," he said.

    The agreement, reached after three days talks in Washington and scheduled to come into effect on Sept.1, 2006, amends a 1995 accord that eliminated most restrictions on air service between the two North American neighbors.

    The previous deal provided virtually no rights for airlines to fly beyond the other country, and limited express cargo services. The new deal expands on the 1995 Canada-U.S. Air Transport Agreement which set out a framework for issues like prices airlines can charge for services and the number of flights airlines can run.

    It also governed how each partner could collect passengers in the other's territory. The most significant changes to the original agreement include liberalizing Canadian air carriers' access to third countries.

    For example, a Canadian air carrier can now take passengers to the U.S., pick up U.S. passengers, and then fly them to a third country. Enditem