EN Official Journal of the European Communities L 280/4

COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 2919/85

of 17 October 1985

laying down the conditions for access to the arrangements under the Revised Convention for the navigation of the Rhine relating to vessels belonging to the Rhine Navigation

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 75 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (2),

Whereas the six Contracting States to the Revised Convention for the navigation of the Rhine, that is to say five Member States of the European Communities (Belgium, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom) and Switzerland amended that Convention by Additional Protocol 2 signed in Strasbourg on 17 October 1979;

Whereas the said Additional Protocol stipulates that only vessels belonging to the Rhine Navigation shall be authorized to transport merchandise and persons between two points situated on the navigable inland waterways referred to in the first paragraph of Article 3 of the Convention; whereas vessels are considered to belong to the Rhine Navigation if they carry a document issued by the competent authority;

Whereas the Protocol of Signature to the abovementioned Additional Protocol provides that the document certifying that a vessel belongs to the Rhine Navigation shall be issued by the competent authority of the State concerned only to vessels which have with that State a genuine link the constituent factors of which are to be determined on the basis of equal treatment between Contracting States to the Convention; whereas, under the terms of the Protocol of Signature, the same treatment must be accorded to vessels which have a genuine link with any Member State; whereas, to that effect, these other Member States are accorded equal status with the Contracting States to the Convention;

Whereas the Contracting States to the Convention have drawn up, within the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCR), implementing provisions determining the conditions under which the abovementioned document should be issued; whereas, by Decision of 8 November 1984, the Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission, defined the common action under which Member States which are Contracting Parties to the Convention adopted these provisions in the form of a resolution of the CCR;

Whereas, in order to ensure that the implementing provisions are put into effect throughout the Community, it is necessary to incorporate them into Community law by means of a Council Regulation adopted under Article 75 of the Treaty fixing the detailed rules required to take into account Community rules and procedures;

Whereas provision should be made for Member States to send the Commission a copy of the information they send the CCR in accordance with this Rgulation,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The provisions contained in the Annex shall be applicable in the Community in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation.

Article 2

1. For the purposes of implementing Articles 2 (4) and 8 (1) of the Annex, each Member State shall at the same time send to the Commission the information which it must send to the CCR under the terms of those provisions.

2. For the purpose of implementing the first sentence of Article 3 (4) of the Annex, the Member State concerned shall also forward to the Commission a copy of the dossier concerning its request for consultation of the CCR.

Article 3

If the CCR should envisage establishing the general conditions referred to in the second sentence of Article 3 (4) of the Annex, the Council, acting by a qualified majority on a proposal from the Commission, shall decide on the joint position to be adopted within the CCR by the Member States which are also Contracting Parties to the Convention.

These conditions will be introduced in the appropriate way at Community level by the Council acting in accordance with the arrangements set out in the first paragraph.

Article 4

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

However, Article 7 (2) of the Annex shall not apply until 1 February 1987.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Luxembourg, 17 October 1985. For the Council The President J. F. POOS

(1) OJ No C 262, 14. 10. 1985.

(2) OJ No C 169, 8. 7. 1985, p. 7.