MILAN, May 19 (Reuters) - Italian airline Alitalia, which struck a rescue deal with Etihad Airways last year, said on Tuesday it would not renew its partnership and joint venture agreements with Air France-KLM AIRF.PA from 2017.

"These agreements are no longer beneficial, either commercially or strategically, to the new Alitalia and its ambitious turnaround plan," Alitalia Chief Executive Silvano Cassano said in a statement. "They were negotiated when Alitalia was in a very different position, with the result that the agreements in their current forms favour the other party."

Cassano said the agreements, which concern passenger services operated by the carriers as well as some cargo services, were undermining Alitalia's ability to restructure its network and achieve long-term sustainability.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak) ((agnieszka.flak@thomsonreuters.com; +39 02 6612 9450; Reuters Messaging: agnieszka.flak.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Keywords: ALITALIA AIRFRANCEKLM/