WORLD TRADE WT/REG11/5
8January 1998
ORGANIZATION(98-0045)
Original: English Committee onRegional Trade Agreement
CENTRAL EUROPEAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT -
ACCESSION OFROMANIA
Thefollowing textreproduces theAgreement onAccession ofRomania totheCentral European
FreeTrade Agreement.1
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AGREEMENT ONACCESSION OFROMANIA TOTHE
CENTRAL EUROPEAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT
TheCzech Republic ,theRepublic ofHungary ,theRepublic ofPoland, theSlovak Republic
andtheRepublic ofSlovenia ontheonesideandRomania ontheother side(hereinafter called the
Parties),
Reaffirming theircommitment totheprinciples ofamarket economy, which constitutes the
basis fortheirrelations,
Considering thepositive development ofthemutual economic co-operation between theParties,
Wishing tocontribute totheprocess ofintegration inEurope through theextension oftheCentral
European FreeTrade Agreement,
Having inmind theDeclarations ofPrime Ministers, doneon25November 1994 inPoznán,
on11September 1995 inBrno andon13September 1996 inJasná,
Recalling theofficial request ofRomania on10April 1996toaccede totheCentral European
FreeTrade Agreement,
Taking intoaccount theAgreement Amending theCentral European FreeTrade Agreement,
doneinBrno on11September 1995,
Acting inaccordance withtheprovisions ofArticle 39aoftheCentral European FreeTrade
Agreement,
Have agreed asfollows:
1TheAnnexes andProtocols thereto have been submitted totheSecretariat forconsultation byinterested
Members (Office 3006).WT/REG11/5
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Article 1
Romania shallaccede totheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement.
Article 2
Romania shallaccept theCentral European FreeTrade Agreement withallitsamendments
signed before signature ofthisAgreement andshallbeunderstood toinclude Romania.
Article 3
References intheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement toitsParties andwhere allstates
areexplicitly mentioned shallbeunderstood toinclude Romania.
Article 4
Thebasic dutyreferred toinparagraph 1ofArticle 4oftheCentral European FreeTrade
Agreement, incaseofRomania shall betheMost Favoured Nation rateofdutyapplicable on
1January 1993.
Article 5
1. Inorder toimplement theprovisions ofparagraph 2ofArticle 3oftheCentral European Free
Trade Agreement Protocols 14,15,16and17totheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement arehereby
established andattached tothisAgreement.
2. Provisions fortheabolition ofcustoms duties onimports between:
- theCzech Republic andtheSlovak Republic ontheonesideandRomania ontheother
sidearelaiddown inProtocol 14,
- theRepublic ofHungary ontheonesideandRomania ontheother sidearelaiddown
inProtocol 15,
- theRepublic ofPoland ontheonesideandRomania ontheother sidearelaiddown
inProtocol 16,
- theRepublic ofSlovenia ontheonesideandRomania ontheother sidearelaiddown
inProtocol 17.
Article 6
1. Inorder toimplement theprovisions ofparagraph 1ofArticle 12oftheCentral European
FreeTrade Agreement Protocols 18,19,20and21totheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement
arehereby established andattached tothisAgreement.
2. Provisions forgranting mutual agricultural concessions between:
- theCzech Republic andtheSlovak Republic ontheonesideandRomania ontheother
sidearelaiddown inProtocol 18,WT/REG11/5
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- theRepublic ofHungary ontheonesideandRomania ontheother sidearelaiddown
inProtocol 19,
- theRepublic ofPoland ontheonesideandRomania ontheother sidearelaiddown
inProtocol 20,
- theRepublic ofSlovenia ontheonesideandRomania ontheother sidearelaiddown
inProtocol 21.
Article 7
Theprovisions inparagraph 2ofArticle 5andparagraph 2ofArticle 7oftheCentral European
FreeTrade Agreement shallnotcover the0.25percentad-valorem customs clearance feeapplied by
Romania toimports fromandexports totheCzech Republic, theRepublic ofHungary, theRepublic
ofPoland, theSlovak Republic andtheRepublic ofSlovenia. Therespective feeshallbeeliminated
by31December 1997 atthelatest.
Article 8
Quantitative restrictions onimports ormeasures having equivalent effect referred toin
paragraph 2ofArticle 8oftheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement andspecified inAnnexes III/a,
III/bandIII/coftheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement shallalsoapply toimports ofproducts
originating inRomania, subject totheprovisions inAnnex toArticle 8ofthisAgreement.
Article 9
Intherelations withtheCzech Republic, theRepublic ofHungary, theRepublic ofPoland,
theSlovak Republic andtheRepublic ofSlovenia, theelimination ofquantitative restrictions onexports
fromRomania, stipulated inparagraph 2ofArticle 9oftheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement,
shallnotapply totheproducts listed inannex toArticle 9ofthisAgreement. Therespective restrictions
shallbeeliminated by31December 1997.
Article 10
Forthepurposes ofthisAgreement itisunderstood thatProtocol 7oftheCentral European
FreeTrade Agreement concerning thedefinition oftheconcept of"originating products" andmethods
ofadministrative cooperation shallalsoapply totheproducts originating inRomania, subject tothe
provisions inAnnex toArticle 10ofthisAgreement.
Article 11
References tocooperation incustoms administration inparagraph 2ofArticle 16oftheCentral
European FreeTrade Agreement shallbeunderstood thatthemutual assistance between administrative
authorities incustoms matters oftheCzech Republic andtheSlovak Republic ontheonesideand
Romania ontheother sideshalltakeplace inaccordance withtheprovision ofAnnex toArticle 11
ofthisAgreement.
Article 12
1. References togovernment procurement inArticle 24oftheCentral European FreeTrade
Agreement shallbeunderstood, inrelations between theCzech Republic andtheSlovak Republic onWT/REG11/5
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theonesideandRomania ontheother side,asforpublic procurement andtheperiod referred toin
paragraph 2ofArticle 24shallendby31December 1998 atthelatest.
2. ItisagreedthatconsultationsshallbeheldintheJointCommitteeunderparagraph3ofArticle24
oftheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement concerning theextension tootherParties ofthetreatment
referred toinparagraph 1.
Article 13
ThisAgreement shallconstitute anintegral partofthecentral European FreeTrade Agreement.
Article 14
1. ThisAgreement shallenter intoforce onthethirtieth dayafterreceiving bytheDepositary
ofthelastnotification oftheParties totheCentral European FreeTrade Agreement andRomania on
thecompletion ofprocedures necessary forthatpurpose.
2. TheDepositary shall, without anydelay, notify allParties ofthecompletion ofprocedures
necessary forentry intoforce ofthisAgreement.
3. Pending theentry intoforce ofthisAgreement according toparagraph 1ofthisArticle, the
Czech Republic, theRepublic ofHungary, theRepublic ofPoland, theSlovak Republic andtheRepublic
ofSlovenia shallapply thisAgreement provisionally from 1July1997, provided thatRomania shall
notify theother Parties, prior to1June1997, thatitsinternal legalrequirements forentry intoforce
ofthisAgreement arefulfilled andRomania shallapply thisAgreement from 1July1997.
4. Asfrom thedateofentry intoforce ofthisAgreement thefreetrade agreements concluded
between:
- theCzech Republic andRomania, signed atPrague on24October 1994;
- theSlovak Republic andRomania, signed atBucharest on11November 1994,
bymutual consent oftheParties concerned expressed inthisAgreement shallcease tobein
force.
5. AsfromthedateofprovisionalapplicationofthisAgreementthefreetradeagreementsmentioned
inparagraph 4ofthisArticle shallnotbeapplied between theirContracting Parties.
INWITNESS WHEREOF theundesigned plenipotentiaries, being dulyauthorized thereto,
havesigned thisAgreement.
DONE atBucharest, this12thdayofApril 1997, inasingle authentic copy intheEnglish
language, which shallbedeposited withtheGovernment oftheRepublic ofPoland. TheDepositary
shalltransmit certified copies toallParties.
FortheCzech Republic FortheSlovak RepublicWT/REG11/5
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FortheRepublic ofHungary FortheRepublic ofSlovenia
FortheRepublic ofPoland ForRomania
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