BRUSSELS — The European Commission said Monday that it would seek to delay for one year a plan to charge foreign airlines for greenhouse gas emissions, potentially removing one of the most contentious issues clouding trade relations with China, India, and the United States.

The system, which requires airlines using an airport in Europe to obtain or buy permits corresponding to the amount of gases they emit, had generated intense opposition among foreign governments. They accused the European Union of violating their sovereignty and unfairly raising the costs paid by airlines from developing countries by imposing its environmental standards on the world.