PROTOCOL for the adaptation of trade aspects of the Europe Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Slovak Republic, of the other part, to take into account the accession of the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden to the European Union and the results of the agricultural negotiations of the Uruguay Round, including the improvements of the existing preferential regime

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, hereinafter referred to as 'the Community`,

of the one part, and

THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC,

of the other part,

WHEREAS the Europe Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Slovak Republic, of the other part, hereinafter referred to as 'the Europe Agreement`, was signed in Brussels on 4 October 1993 and entered into force on 1 February 1995;

WHEREAS the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995;

WHEREAS under the terms of Articles 76, 102 and 128 of the 1994 Act of Accession, the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden have to apply, as from 1 January 1995, the provisions of the preferential Agreements concluded by the Community with certain third countries, among them the Slovak Republic;

WHEREAS the Community has adopted as from 1 January 1995 transitional measures in the form of autonomous tariff quotas taking into account the preferential tariff concessions applied by the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden towards the Slovak Republic, and whereas the Slovak Republic has adopted as from 1 January 1995 transitional measures in the form of tariff quotas taking into account the preferential tariff regime applied by the Slovak Republic towards the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden, notably concerning agricultural and processed agricultural products;

WHEREAS the commitments of the Community and the Slovak Republic in the framework of the negotiations of the Uruguay Round require the amendment of the import tariff regimes in the Community and the Slovak Republic, in particular those concerning agricultural and processed agricultural products;

WHEREAS the accession of the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden to the European Union and the implementation of the results of the Uruguay Round are likely to affect the bilateral concessions in the framework of the Europe Agreement, and it is therefore necessary to adapt the Europe Agreement through a Protocol for the adaptation of the trade aspects of this Agreement;

WHEREAS the Council decided by Decision 95/131/EC (1) to apply on a provisional basis from 1 January 1995 the bilateral Agreement which was negotiated by the European Commission on behalf of the Community, amending the Additional Protocol to the Europe Agreement, on trade in textile products, between the Community and the Slovak Republic to take into account the accession of the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden to the European Union;

WHEREAS the Council decided by Decision 96/225/EC (2) to apply on a provisional basis from 1 January 1996 the bilateral Agreement which was negotiated by the Commission on behalf of the Community, following the review and amendment of the Additional Protocol to the Europe Agreement, on trade in textile products, between the Community and the Slovak Republic;

WHEREAS the Community's tariff concessions for fish and fishery products, originating in the Slovak Republic, take account of the enlargement of the Community with the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden as well as the quantities set out in the exchange of letters of 28 October 1994,

HAVE DECIDED to determine by mutual Agreement the adaptations to be made on trade provisions of the Agreement following the accession of the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden, of the one part, and the entry into force of the results of the Uruguay Round in the agricultural field, of the other part, and to this end have designated as their plenipotentiaries:

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY:

Manfred SCHEICH

Ambassador,

Permanent Representative of the Republic of Austria,

Chairman of the Permanent Representatives Committee,

Günther BURGHARDT

Director-General of the Directorate-General for External Political Relations of the Commission of the European Communities,

THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC:

Emil KUCHÁR

Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary,

Head of the Mission of the Slovak Republic to the European Communities,

WHO, having exchanged their full powers, found in good and due form,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The Additional Protocol to the Europe Agreement, on trade in textile products, shall be amended as follows:

1. the first subparagraph of Article 2(3) shall be replaced by the following:

'3. The origin of the products covered by this Protocol shall be determined in accordance with the rules of non-preferential origin in force in the Community.`;

2. Annex II shall be replaced by the text in Annex A to this Protocol;

3. Article 2(3) of Appendix A shall be replaced by the following:

'3. The certificate of origin referred to in paragraph 1 is not required for the importation of goods covered by a movement certificate EUR.1 or a form EUR.2 issued in conformity with Protocol 4 to the Europe Agreement in cases where those documents clearly establish that the Slovak Republic is to be considered as the country of origin on the basis of the rules on non-preferential origin in force in the Community.`;

4. the second indent of the second subparagraph of Article 14(2) of Appendix A shall be amended as follows:

'- two letters identifying the intended Member State of customs clearance as follows:

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5. the model of the certificate of origin attached to Appendix A shall be replaced by that given in Annex B to this Protocol;

6. the model of the export licence attached to Appendix A shall be replaced by that given in Annex C to this Protocol;

7. the Annex to Appendix B shall be replaced by the text in Annex D to this Protocol;

8. the Annex to Appendix C shall be replaced by the text in Annex E to this Protocol.

Article 2

With regard to processed agricultural products:

1. the text of Protocol 3 to the Europe Agreement shall be replaced by the text given in Annex F to this Protocol;

2. Article 9(1) of the Europe Agreement shall be replaced by the following:

'1. The provisions of this chapter shall apply to products originating in the Community and the Slovak Republic listed in Chapters 25 to 97 of the Combined Nomenclature, with the exception of the products listed in Annex I and Protocol 3.`;

3. Article 19(2) of the Europe Agreement shall be replaced by the following:

'2. "Agricultural products" means the products listed in Chapters 1 to 24 of the Combined Nomenclature and the products listed in Annex I and Protocol 3, but excluding fishery products as defined by Regulation (EEC) No 3678/91.`

Article 3

With regard to agricultural products:

1. Annexes XIa and XIb and Annex XII to the Europe Agreement shall be replaced by the texts given in Annexes G and H to this Protocol respectively;

2. Article 21(2) and (3) of the Europe Agreement shall be replaced by the following:

'2. The preferential regime granted to imports into the Community of products originating in the Slovak Republic is set out in Annex XI.

3. The preferential regime granted to imports into the Slovak Republic of products originating in the Community is set out in Annex XII`;

3. Article 21(4) of the Europe Agreement shall be repealed;

4. Annexes XIII and XIV to the Europe Agreement shall be repealed.

Article 4

With regard to fishery products:

1. Annex XV shall be replaced by the text given in Annex I to this Protocol;

2. the first sentence of Article 24 of the Europe Agreement shall be replaced by the following:

'The preferential trade regime granted to fishery products originating in the Slovak Republic is laid down in Annex XV.`

Article 5

The Annexes shall form an integral part of this Protocol. This Protocol shall form part of the Agreement.

Article 6

This Protocol shall be approved by the Community and the Slovak Republic in conformity with their own procedures. The Contracting Parties shall take the appropriate measures for the implementation of this Protocol.

Article 7

This Protocol shall enter into force the first day of the first month following the Contracting Parties' notification of the accomplishment of the corresponding procedures according to Article 6.

Article 8

This Protocol shall be drawn up in two copies in the following languages: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Slovak languages, each of these texts being equally authentic.

Hecho en Bruselas, el diecinueve de octubre de mil novecientos noventa y ocho.

Udfærdiget i Bruxelles den nittende oktober nitten hundrede og otteoghalvfems.

Geschehen zu Brüssel am neunzehnten Oktober neunzehnhundertachtundneunzig.

¸ãéíå óôéò ÂñõîÝëëåò, óôéò äÝêá åííÝá Ïêôùâñßïõ ÷ßëéá åííéáêüóéá åíåíÞíôá ïêôþ.

Done at Brussels on the nineteenth day of October in the year one thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight.

Fait à Bruxelles, le dix-neuf octobre mil neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-huit.

Fatto a Bruxelles, addì diciannove ottobre millenovecentonovantotto.

Gedaan te Brussel, de negentiende oktober negentienhonderd achtennegentig.

Feito em Bruxelas, em dezanove de Outubro de mil novecentos e noventa e oito.

Tehty Brysselissä yhdeksäntenätoista päivänä lokakuuta vuonna tuhatyhdeksänsataayhdeksänkymmentäkahdeksan.

Som skedde i Bryssel den nittonde oktober nittonhundranittioåtta.

V Bruseli devätnásteho d Ona mesiaca október roku tisíc devät'sto devät'desiateho Eosmeho.

Por la Comunidad Europea

For Det Europæiske Fællesskab

Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft

Ãéá ôçí ÅõñùðáúêÞ Êïéíüôçôá

For the European Community

Pour la Communauté européenne

Per la Comunità europea

Voor de Europese Gemeenschap

Pela Comunidade Europeia

Euroopan yhteisön puolesta

På Europeiska gemenskapens vägnar

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Za Slovenskú republiku

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(1) OJ L 94, 26.4.1995, p. 1.

(2) OJ L 81, 30.3.1996, p. 310.

ANNEX A

'ANNEX II

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ANNEX B

'Annex to Appendix A Article 2 (1)

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ANNEX C

'Annex to Appendix A Article 7 (1)

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ANNEX D

'Annex to Appendix B

(The full product descriptions of the categories listed in this Annex are to be found in Annex I to the Protocol)

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ANNEX E

'Annex to Appendix C (1)

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ANNEX F

'PROTOCOL 3

on trade between the Slovak Republic and the Community in processed agricultural products

Article 1

1. The Community and the Slovak Republic shall apply to processed agricultural products the duties, listed in Annexes I and II respectively in accordance with the conditions mentioned therein, whether limited by quota or not.

2. The Association Council may decide on:

- any extension of the list of processed agricultural products under this Protocol,

- any amendment of the duties mentioned in Annexes I and II,

- any increase or abolition of tariff quotas.

3. The Association Council may replace the duties established by this Protocol by a regime established on the basis of the respective market prices of the Community and the Slovak Republic of the agricultural products actually used in the manufacture of processed agricultural products subject to this Protocol. It will establish the list of goods subject to these amounts and as a consequence, the list of basic products; to this end, it will decide the general rules of application.

Article 2

The duties applied conforming to Article 1 may be reduced by Decision of the Association Council:

- when in trade between the Community and the Slovak Republic the duties applied to the basic products are reduced, or

- in response to reductions resulting from mutual concessions relating to processed agricultural products.

The reductions provided for under the first indent will be calculated on the part of the duty designated as the agricultural component which shall correspond to the agricultural products actually used in the manufacture of the processed agricultural products in question and deduced from the duties applied to these basic agricultural products.

Article 3

The Community and the Slovak Republic will inform each other of the administrative arrangement adopted for the products covered by this Protocol.

These arrangements should ensure equal treatment for all interested parties and should be as simple and flexible as possible.

ANNEX I

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ANNEX II

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ANNEX G

'ANNEX XI

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Appendix

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2. The minimum import prices, as set out in point 1, will be respected on a consignment by consignment basis. Where a customs declaration value is lower than the minimum import price, a countervailing duty will be charged equal to the difference between the minimum import price and the customs declaration value.

3. The minimum import prices, as set out in point 1, will be respected on a consignment by consignment basis. Where a customs declaration value is lower than the minimum import price, a countervailing duty will be charged equal to the difference between the minimum import price and the customs declaration value.

4. At the request of either the Community or the Slovak Republic, the Association Committee shall examine the functioning of the system or the revision of the level of the minimum import prices. If appropriate, the Association Committee shall take the necessary decisions.

5. To encourage and promote the development of trade and for the mutual benefit of all parties concerned, a consultation meeting will be organised three months before the beginning of each marketing year in the Community. This consultation meeting will take place between the European Commission and the interested European producers' organisations for the products concerned, on the one part, and the authorities', producers' and exporters' organisations of all the associated exporting countries, on the other part.

During this consultation meeting, the market situation for soft fruit including, in particular, forecasts for production, stock situation, price evolution and possible market development, as well as possibilities to adapt supply to demand, will be discussed.

Exchange of letters between the European Community and the Slovak Republic regarding entry prices applied to the import of fruit and vegetables into the Community

A. Letter from the Community

Sir,

The Agreement on the adaptation of the agricultural part of the Europe Agreement following the implementation of the Uruguay Round and the enlargement of the European Community signed today between the European Community and the Slovak Republic does not contain any provisions regarding the entry price regime applied to the import of fruit and vegetables into the Community.

It has been agreed that the Parties will continue consultations on this sector in order to find a solution. Taking into account, inter alia, the experience of the last marketing years, the solution should allow the continuation of trade relations traditionally established between the Community and the Slovak Republic for the products concerned. In the meantime, the Slovak Republic will not be treated less favourably than other associated countries in this context.

In addition, both parties will continue talks in the framework of the relevant procedures of the Europe Agreement on any other unresolved issues in order to find as soon as possible mutually acceptable solutions.

I should be obliged if you would confirm the agreement of the Government of the Slovak Republic to the contents of this letter.

Please accept, Sir, the assurance of my highest consideration.

For the Council of the European Union

B. Letter from the government of the Slovak Republic

Sir,

I have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your letter of today's date which reads as follows:

"The Agreement on the adaptation of the agricultural part of the Europe Agreement following the implementation of the Uruguay Round and the enlargement of the European Community signed today between the European Community and the Slovak Republic does not contain any provisions regarding the entry price regime applied to the import of fruit and vegetables into the Community.

It has been agreed that the Parties will continue consultations on this sector in order to find a solution. Taking into account, inter alia, the experience of the last marketing years, the solution should allow the continuation of trade relations traditionally established between the Community and the Slovak Republic for the products concerned. In the meantime, the Slovak Republic will not be treated less favourably than other associated countries in this context.

In addition, both parties will continue talks in the framework of the relevant procedures of the Europe Agreement on any other unresolved issues in order to find as soon as possible mutually acceptable solutions.

I should be obliged if you would confirm the agreement of the Government of the Slovak Republic to the contents of this letter."

I have the honour to confirm that the Government of the Slovak Republic is in agreement with the contents of this letter.

Please accept, Sir, the assurance of my highest consideration.

On behalf of the Government of the Slovak Republic`

ANNEX H

'ANNEX XII

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ANNEX I

'ANNEX XV

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