Artikel 16

1. In a spirit of close co-operation, either Party may, at any time, request consultations relating to this Agreement, its implementation and satisfactory compliance with the provisions of this Agreement. If any dispute arises between the Parties relating to the interpretation or application of this Agreement, the Parties shall in the first place endeavour to settle it by consultation and negotiation.
2. Any dispute which cannot be settled by consultation and negotiation may, at the request of either Party to this Agreement, be submitted to a mediator or a dispute settlement panel. Such a mediator or panel may be used for mediation, determination of the substance of the dispute or to recommend a remedy or resolution of the dispute.
3. The Parties shall agree in advance on the terms of reference of the mediator or of the panel, the guiding principles or criteria and the terms of access to the mediator or the panel. They shall also consider, if necessary, providing for an interim relief and the possibility for the participation of any third party that may be directly affected by the dispute, bearing in mind the objective and need for a simple, responsive and expeditious process.
4. A mediator or the members of a panel may be appointed from a roster of suitably qualified aviation experts maintained by the International Civil Aviation Organization. The selection of the expert or experts shall be completed within fifteen (15) days of receipt of the request for submission to a mediator or to a panel. If the Parties fail to agree on the selection of an expert or experts, the selection may be referred to the President of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization. Any expert used for this mechanism should be adequately qualified in the general subject matter of the dispute.
5. A mediation should be completed within sixty (60) days of engagement of the mediator or the panel and any determination, including, if applicable, any recommendations, should be rendered within sixty (60) days of engagement of the expert or experts. The Parties may agree in advance that the mediator or the panel may grant interim relief to the complainant, if requested, in which case a determination shall be made initially.
6. The Parties shall co-operate in good faith to advance the mediation and to be bound by any decision or determination of the expert or experts, unless they otherwise agree. If the Parties agree in advance to request only a determination of the facts, they shall use those facts for resolution of the dispute.
7. The costs of this mechanism shall be estimated upon initiation and apportioned equally, but with the possibility of re-apportionment under the final decision.
8. The mechanism is without prejudice to the continuing use of the consultation process, the subsequent use of arbitration or termination under Article 18 (Termination) of this Agreement.