European Union Association Agreement

European Union Association Agreement
A European Union Association Agreement or simply Association Agreement (AA) is a treaty between the European Union (EU), its Member States and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. Areas frequently covered by such agreements include the development of political, trade, social, cultural and security links.
Association Agreements are broad framework agreements between the EU (or its predecessors) and its member states, and an external state which governs their bilateral relations. The provision for an association agreement was included in the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community, as a means to enable co-operation of the Community with the United Kingdom, which had retreated from the treaty negotiations at the Messina Conference of 1955. According to the European External Action Service, for an agreement to be classified as an AA, it must meet several criteria:
The EU typically concludes Association Agreements in exchange for commitments to political, economic, trade, or human rights reform in a country. In exchange, the country may be offered tariff-free access to some or all EU markets (industrial goods, agricultural products, etc.), and financial or technical assistance. Most recently signed AAs also include a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the EU and the third country.
Association Agreements have to be accepted by the European Union and need to be ratified by all the EU member states and the state concerned.
Names and types
AAs go by a variety of names (e.g. Euro-Mediterranean Agreement Establishing an Association, Europe Agreement Establishing an Association) and need not necessarily even have the word "Association" in the title. Some AAs contain a promise of future EU membership for the contracting state.
The first states to sign such agreements were Greece in 1961 and Turkey in 1963.
In recent history, such agreements have been signed as part of two EU policies, the Stabilisation and Association Process (SAp) and the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP).
The countries of the western Balkans (official candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and potential candidate Kosovo) are covered by SAp. All six have "Stabilisation and Association Agreements" (SAA) with the EU in force.
The Eastern European neighbours of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine are all members of the Eastern Partnership and are covered by the ENP. While Russia has a special status with the EU-Russia Common Spaces instead of ENP participation.
Meanwhile, the countries of the Mediterranean, (Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, the Palestinian Authority, Syria, Tunisia) are also covered by the ENP and seven of the Mediterranean states have a "Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an Association" (EMAA) with the EU in force, while Palestine has an interim EMAA in force. Syria initialed an EMAA in 2008, however signing has been deferred indefinitely. Negotiations for a Framework Agreement with the remaining state, Libya, have been suspended.
Moldova and Ukraine have Association Agreements in force. Armenia completed negotiations for a AA in 2013 but decided not to sign the agreement and later signed a revised CEPA with the EU in 2017. Azerbaijan was also negotiating an AA, but did not conclude one.
Both the SAA and ENP are based mostly on the EU's acquis communautaire and its promulgation in the co-operating states legislation. Of course, the depth of the harmonisation is less than full EU members and some policy areas may not be covered (depending on the particular state).
In addition to these two policies, AAs with free-trade agreement provisions have been signed with other states and trade blocs including Chile and South Africa.
EU Agreements with third states
Association Agreements
In force
ACP PA (2003)
Albania SAA (2009)
Algeria EMAA (2005)
Bosnia and Herzegovina SAA (2015)
Chile AA (2005)
Egypt EMAA (2004)
Georgia AA (2016)
Iceland EEA (1994)
Israel EMAA (2000)
Jordan EMAA (2002)
Kosovo* SAA (2016)
Lebanon EMAA (2006)
Liechtenstein EEA (1995)
Moldova AA (2016)
Montenegro SAA (2010)
Morocco EMAA (2000)
North Macedonia SAA (2004)
Norway EEA (1994)
Serbia SAA (2013)
South Africa ATDC (2004)
Syria CA (1978; cooperation programmes suspended in 2011)
Tunisia EMAA (1998)
Turkey AA (1964) the framework for a CU (1995)
Ukraine AA (2017)
United Kingdom: TCA (2021)
Currently pending ratification
Central America: European Union Central American Association Agreement (signed in 2012)
Currently in negotiations
Andorra AA
Libya (negotiations for a Framework Agreement were launched in 2008, but suspended in 2011 due to the Libyan Civil War; as of 2014 the EU is seeking to re-launch the negotiations)
Mercosur AA
Monaco AA
San Marino AA
Syria EMAA (initialled in 2008, however signing has been stalled indefinitely by the EU due to concerns over the conduct of Syrian authorities during anti-government protests in 2011 and the ensuing civil war)
Defunct agreements
African states Convention of Association (1964, 1971), superseded by another Convention in 1976
ACP Convention (1976, 1981, 1986, 1991), superseded by PA in 2003
Bulgaria EAA (1995), acceded to the EU in 2007
Croatia SAA (2005), acceded to the EU in 2013
Cyprus AA (1973), acceded to the EU in 2004
Czech Republic EAA (1995), acceded to the EU in 2004
Czech and Slovak Federative Republic EAA (NA), did not enter into force due to dissolution of Czechoslovakia
EAC Agreement Establishing an Association (1971), superseded by another Convention in 1976
Estonia EAA (1998), acceded to the EU in 2004
Greece AA (1961), acceded to the EU in 1981
Hungary EAA (1994), acceded to the EU in 2004
Latvia EAA (1998), acceded to the EU in 2004
Lithuania EAA (1998), acceded to the EU in 2004
Malta AA (1971), acceded to the EU in 2004
Poland EAA (1994), acceded to the EU in 2004
Romania EAA (1995), acceded to the EU in 2007
Slovakia EAA (1995), acceded to the EU in 2004
Slovenia EAA (1999), acceded to the EU in 2004
United Kingdom ACR (1955), acceded to the EU in 1973
Free-trade agreements
In force
Andorra CU (1991)
Faroe Islands (autonomous constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark) FTA (1997)
Japan EPA (2019)
Mexico EPPCCA (2000)
Monaco CU (1958)
Palestinian Authority interim EMAA (1997)
San Marino CCU (2002)
Singapore FTA (2019)
South Korea FTA (2015)
Switzerland FTA (1973)
Vietnam FTA (2020)
Currently undergoing ratification
Colombia and Peru FTA (signed in 2012)
Canada CETA (signed in 2016)
Cameroon Interim EPA (signed in 2009)
CARIFORUM EPA (signed in 2008)
Côte d'Ivoire Stepping Stone EPA (signed in 2009)
EAC EPA (signed in 2016)
Ecuador FTA (signed in 2016)
Ghana Stepping Stone EPA (signed in 2016)
Madagascar, Mauritius, the Seychelles, and Zimbabwe Interim EPA (signed in 2009)
SADC EPA (signed in 2016)
Currently in negotiations
Australia FTA
India FTA
Malaysia FTA
Morocco DCFTA
New Zealand FTA
Philippines FTA
Thailand FTA
Tunisia DCFTA
United States TTIP
APC Pacific EPA
ASEAN FTA (negotiations paused in 2009, in favour of bilateral negotiations with individual states)
ECOWAS EPA (finalised in February 2014, but not signed)
Central Africa states EPA
GCC FTA (negotiations suspended by GCC in 2008)
Other agreements
Andorra CA (2005)
Armenia CEPA (2021)
APC Pacific Interim PA (2011)
ASEAN CA (1980), valid only for the then member states of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
Azerbaijan PCA (1999)
GCC CA (1989)
Indonesia ACPC (2014)
Iraq PCA (2018)
Kazakhstan Enhanced PCA (2020)
Kyrgyzstan PCA (1999)
Mongolia ATEC (1993)
Mongolia ACPC (2017)
New Zealand PARC (2022)
Philippines PCA (2018)
Russia PCA (1997)
Tajikistan PCA (2010)
Ukraine PCA (1998)
USSR TCA (1989), endorsed by Tajikistan in 1994 and by Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan PCA (1999)
Vietnam ACPC (2016)
Yemen CA (1998)
Currently undergoing ratification
Belarus PCA (signed in 1995)
Singapore PCA (signed in 2018)
Turkmenistan PCA (signed in 1998)
Currently in negotiations
Malaysia PCA
Russia (negotiations suspended in 2014)
Thailand PCA
Uzbekistan Enhanced PCA
Defunct agreements
Albania ATCEC (1992), superseded by SAA in 2009
Algeria CA (1978), superseded by EMAA in 2005
Armenia PCA (1999), superseded by CEPA in 2021
Egypt CA (1978), superseded by EMAA in 2004
Georgia PCA (1999), superseded by AA in 2016
Kazakhstan PCA (1999) superseded by EPCA in 2020
Macedonia CA (1998), superseded by SAA in 2004
Mexico CA (1991), superseded by EPPCCA in 2000
Moldova PCA (1998), superseded by AA in 2016
Morocco CA (1978), superseded by EMAA in 2000
Serbia FA FRY-EU (2000)
Tunisia CA (1978), superseded by EMAA in 1998
Vietnam CA (1996) superseded by ACPC in 2016
Legend
AA = Agreement Establishing an Association/Association Agreement
ACPC = Agreement on Comprehensive Partnership and Cooperation
ACR = Agreement concerning the relations
ATDC = Agreement on Trade, Development and Cooperation
CEPA = Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement
CETA = Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement
CA = Cooperation Agreement
CCU = Agreement on Cooperation and Customs Union
CU = Customs Union
DCFTA = Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement
EPA = Economic Partnership Agreement
EPPCCA = Economic Partnership, Political Coordination and Cooperation Agreement
EAA = Europe Agreement Establishing an Association
EEA = European Economic Area
EMAA = Euro-Mediterranean Agreement Establishing an Association
FTA = Free Trade Agreement
PA = Partnership Agreement
PCA = Partnership and Cooperation Agreement/Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation
PARC = Partnership Agreement on Relations and Cooperation
SAA = Stabilisation and Association Agreement
ATCEC = Agreement on Trade and Commercial and Economic Cooperation
ATEC = Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation
TTIP = Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership
Impact on environment and national economies
Agriculture & Manufacturing
Trade agreements between the EU and other countries or free trade zones have differential effects on the respective economies. Agricultural industries are most significantly impacted when regional farms have to compete with large producers that gain access to markets when tariffs fall. For large agreements such as the AA with Mercosur, significant opposition exists in European countries against cheaper imports of meats and other products. However, for the manufacturing sector of cars and industrial products for export, usually involving larger global corporations, relevant volume increases are obvious for the more industrialised trade members.
Environment
The impact on the environment for those nations that export farm products from areas with rain forests or other ecologically relevant regions, for example in Brazil, has been increasingly documented by environmental groups opposing EU trade agreements. In addition, other industries with large environmental impact such as mining are expanding in areas where the regulatory burden is low, for example in South America and Asia. Industry groups have argued that increased economic performance in those sectors will only strengthen standards in participating nations, and that EU trade agreements should go hand in hand with harmonisation efforts for environmental regulations.
See also
Eastern Partnership
European integration
European Union free trade agreements
Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe
Free trade areas in Europe
EU-ACP Economic Partnership Agreements
Future enlargement of the European Union
Privileged partnership
References
External links
Free trade agreements
EU free trade agreements
Council of the European Union Agreements and conventions database
European External Action Service Treaties Office Database
EU Neighbourhood Info Centre
EU Neighbourhood Library
Lists of treaties