Middle East Airlines – Air Liban (MEA), the flag carrier of Lebanon, has signed an agreement to join SkyTeam, a global airline alliance, in 2012.

MEA will be the alliance's second member from the Middle East, a strategic growth market for SkyTeam.

The addition of MEA to the alliance network will enable SkyTeam to compete more efficiently, not only within the Middle East, but also to and from Western Africa. SkyTeam in return offers MEA a complementary global network. MEA customers will be able to connect to the world through traffic flows from the SkyTeam hubs in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas.

'By joining SkyTeam, MEA being relatively a small airline, will now be able to provide its customers an extensive global network covering Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. MEA customers will benefit from SkyTeam members' loyalty program as well as ST members lounges at all airports worldwide,' said MEA chairman - director general Mohamad El-Hout.

'The Middle East is a strategic market for our alliance as we continue to extend the SkyTeam network to all corners of the globe,' added SkyTeam chairman Leo van Wijk.-TradeArabia News Service