Decision No 1/2000 of the EC-Mexico Joint Council

of 23 March 2000

established by the Interim Agreement on Trade and Trade-related matters between the European Community, of the one part, and the United Mexican States, of the other part, of 8 December 1997 adopting its rules of procedure

(2000/414/EC)

THE JOINT COUNCIL,

Having regard to the Interim Agreement on trade and trade related matters between the European Community of the one part, and the United Mexican States, of the other part, signed in Brussels on 8 December 1997, hereinafter referred to as "Interim Agreement" and in particular Articles 7 to 11 thereof,

Whereas that Interim Agreement entered into force on 1 July 1998,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Presidency

The Joint Council shall be presided over alternatively for periods of twelve months by a member of the Council of the European Union, on behalf of the Community, and a member of the Secretaría de Comercio y Fomento Industrial (hereinafter referred to as SECOFI), on behalf of Mexico. However the first period of presidency shall start on the date on which the first meeting of the Joint Council takes place and end on 31 December of the same year.

Article 2

Meetings

1. The Joint Council shall meet at ministerial level, at regular intervals and when circumstances require if the Parties so agree.

2. Each session of the Joint Council shall be held in a place mutually agreed by the Parties.

3. The meetings of the Joint Council are jointly convened by the Secretaries of the Joint Council.

Article 3

Representation

1. The members of the Joint Council may be represented if they are prevented from attending.

2. A member wishing to be represented shall notify the Chairman of the name of this representative before the meeting at which he is to be so represented. The representative of a member of the Joint Council shall exercise all the rights of that member.

Article 4

Delegations

The members of the Joint Council may be accompanied by officials. Before each meeting, the Chairman of the Joint Council shall be informed of the intended composition and of the Head of the delegation of each Party.

Article 5

Secretariat

An official of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union and an official of SECOFI shall act jointly as Secretaries of the Joint Council.

Article 6

Documents

When the deliberations of the Joint Council are based on written supporting documents, such documents shall be numbered and circulated as documents of the Joint Council by the two Secretaries.

Article 7

Correspondence

1. All correspondence addressed to the Joint Council or to the Chairman of the Council shall be forwarded to both Secretaries of the Joint Council.

2. The two Secretaries shall ensure that correspondence is forwarded to the Chairman of the Joint Council and, where appropriate, circulated as documents referred to in Article 6 to other members of the Joint Council. Correspondence circulated shall be sent to the Secretariat General of the Commission, the Permanent Representations of the Member States and SECOFI.

3. Correspondence from the Chairman of the Joint Council shall be sent to the recipients by the respective Secretary and, where appropriate, circulated as documents referred to in Article 6 to the other members of the Joint Council at the addressees indicated in paragraph 2.

Article 8

Agenda for the meetings

1. A provisional agenda for each meeting shall be drawn up by the Secretaries of the Joint Council on the basis of suggestions by the Parties. It shall be forwarded by the corresponding Secretary to the addressees referred to in Article 7 not later than fifteen days before the beginning of the meeting.

The provisional agenda shall include the items in respect of which a request for inclusion in the agenda has been received by either of the two Secretaries not later than 21 days before the beginning of the meeting, save that items shall not be written into the provisional agenda unless the supporting documentation has been forwarded to the Secretaries not later than the date of dispatch of the provisional agenda.

The agenda shall be adopted by the Joint Council at the beginning of each meeting. An item other than those appearing on the provisional agenda may be placed on the agenda if the two Parties so agree.

2. In agreement with the Parties, the time limits specified in paragraph 1 may be shortened in order to take account of the requirements of a particular case.

Article 9

Minutes

1. Draft minutes of each meeting shall be drawn up as soon as possible jointly by the two Secretaries.

2. The minutes shall, as a general rule, indicate in respect of each item on the agenda:

(a) the documentation submitted to the Joint Council;

(b) statements which a member of the Joint Council has requested to be entered;

(c) the decisions taken, the recommendations made, the statements agreed upon and the conclusions adopted on specific items.

3. The minutes shall also include a list of members of the Joint Council or their representatives who participated at the meeting.

4. The draft minutes shall be submitted to the Joint Council for approval at its next meeting. The draft minutes also can be agreed in writing by both Parties. When approved, two authentic copies of the minutes shall be signed by the two Secretaries and be filed by the Parties. A copy of the minutes shall be forwarded to each of the addressees referred to in Article 7.

Article 10

Decisions and recommendations

1. The Joint Council shall take decisions and make recommendations by mutual agreement between the Parties.

During the inter-session period, the Joint Council may adopt a decision or make recommendations by written procedure if both Parties so agree.

A written procedure consists of an exchange of notes between the two Secretaries, acting in agreement with the Parties.

2. The decisions and recommendations of the Joint Council within the meaning of Article 9 of the Interim Agreement shall be entitled "decision" and "recommendation" respectively, followed by a serial number, by the date of their adoption and by a description of their subject.

3. The decisions and recommendations of the Joint Council shall be authenticated by the two Secretaries and two authentic copies signed by Heads of delegation of the two Parties.

4. Decisions and recommendations shall be forwarded to each of the addressees referred to in Article 7 as documents of the Joint Council.

Article 11

Publicity

1. Unless otherwise decided, the meetings of the Joint Council shall not be public.

2. Each Party may decide on the publication of the decisions and the recommendations of the Joint Council in its respective official publication.

Article 12

Languages

1. The official languages of the Joint Council shall be the official languages of the Parties.

2. Unless otherwise decided, the Joint Council shall normally base its deliberations and take its decisions on documentation and proposals prepared in these languages.

Article 13

Expenses

1. The European Community and the United Mexican States shall each defray the expenses they incur by reason of their participation in the meetings of the Joint Council, both with regard to staff, travel and subsistence expenditure and to postal and telecommunications expenditure.

2. Expenditure in connection with organisation of meetings, interpretation at meetings, translation and reproduction of documents shall be borne by the Party which hosts the meeting.

Article 14

Joint Committee

1. A Joint Committee is hereby established in accordance with Article 10 of the Interim Agreement in order to assist the Joint Council in the performance of its duties.

2. The Joint Committee shall be composed of representatives of the Commission assisted by representatives of the Member States on the one hand, and of representatives of SECOFI on the other, normally at senior civil servant level.

3. The Joint Committee shall prepare the meetings and the deliberations of the Joint Council, monitor the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the Joint Council where appropriate and, in general, the proper functioning of the Interim Agreement. It shall consider any matter referred to it by the Joint Council as well as any other matter, which may arise in the course of the day-to-day implementation of the Interim Agreement. It shall submit any proposals of decisions and recommendations for adoption to the Joint Council.

4. The rules of procedure of the Joint Committee are attached as Annex to this Decision.

Done at Lisbon, 23 March 2000.

For the Joint Council

The President

J. Gama

ANNEX