II 
(Non-legislative acts)  
INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS  
COUNCIL DECISION  
of 16 September 2010  
on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, and provisional application of the Free Trade 
Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic 
of Korea, of the other part  
(2011/265/EU)  
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,  
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European 
Union, and in particular Articles 91, 100(2), 167(3) and 207, in 
conjunction with Article 218(5) thereof,  
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,  
Whereas:  
(1) On 23 April 2007 the Council authorised the 
Commission to negotiate a free trade agreement with 
the Republic of Korea, hereinafter referred to as ‘Korea’, 
on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.  
(2) Those negotiations have been concluded and a Free Trade 
Agreement between the European Union and its Member 
States, of the one part, and the Republic of Korea, of the 
other part, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Agreement’, was 
initialled on 15 October 2009.  
(3) Article 15.10.5 of the Agreement provides for its provi ­
sional application.  
(4) The Agreement should be signed on behalf of the Union 
and applied on a provisional basis, pending the 
completion of the procedures for its conclusion.  
(5) The Agreement does not affect the rights of investors of 
the Member States to benefit from any more favourable 
treatment provided for in any agreement related to 
investment to which a Member State and Korea are 
Parties.  
(6) Pursuant to Article 218(7) of the Treaty, it is appropriate 
for the Council to authorise the Commission to approve certain limited modifications to the Agreement. The 
Commission should be authorised to bring about the 
termination of the entitlement to co-productions as 
provided for in Article 5 of the Protocol on Cultural 
Cooperation unless the Commission determines that the 
entitlement should be continued and this is approved by 
the Council pursuant to a specific procedure necessitated 
both by the sensitive nature of this element of the 
Agreement and by the fact that the Agreement is to be 
concluded by the Union and its Member States. In 
addition, the Commission should be authorised to 
approve modifications to be adopted by the Working 
Group on Geographical Indications pursuant to 
Article 10.25 of the Agreement.  
(7) It is appropriate to set out the relevant procedures for the 
protection of geographical indications which are given 
protection pursuant to the Agreement.  
(8) The Union should activate the procedures relating to 
limitations on duty drawback, safeguard and dispute 
settlement whenever the conditions established in the 
relevant provisions of the Agreement are met. The 
rights of the Union provided for in Article 14 
(Drawback of, or exemption from, customs duties) of 
the Protocol concerning the definition of ‘originating 
products’ and methods of administrative cooperation of 
the Agreement should be exercised in accordance with 
the relevant provisions to be contained in the Regulation 
of the European Parliament and of the Council imple ­
menting the bilateral safeguard clause of the EU-Korea 
Free Trade Agreement.  
(9) The provisional application foreseen in this Decision does 
not prejudge the allocation of competences between the 
Union and its Member States in accordance with the 
Treaties,EN 14.5.2011 Official Journal of the European Union L 127/1
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  
Article 1  
The signing of the Free Trade Agreement between the European 
Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic 
of Korea, of the other part, is hereby approved on behalf of the 
Union, subject to the conclusion of the said Agreement.  
The text of the Agreement is attached to this Decision.  
Article 2  
The President of the Council is hereby authorised to designate 
the person(s) empowered to sign the Agreement on behalf of 
the Union subject to its conclusion.  
Article 3  
1. The Agreement shall be applied on a provisional basis by 
the Union as provided for in Article 15.10.5 of the Agreement, 
pending the completion of the procedures for its conclusion. 
The following provisions shall not be provisionally applied:  
— Articles 10.54 to 10.61 (criminal enforcement of intellectual 
property rights),  
— Articles 4(3), 5(2), 6(1), 6(2), 6(4), 6(5), 8, 9 and 10 of the 
Protocol on cultural cooperation.  
2. In order to determine the date of provisional application 
the Council shall fix the date by which the notification referred 
to in Article 15.10.5 of the Agreement is to be sent to Korea. 
That notification shall include references to those provisions 
which cannot be provisionally applied.  
The Council shall coordinate the effective date of provisional 
application with the date of the entry into force of the proposed 
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council 
implementing the bilateral safeguard clause of the EU-Korea 
Free Trade Agreement.  
3. The date from which the Agreement will be provisionally 
applied will be published in the  Official Journal of the European 
Union  by the General Secretariat of the Council.  
Article 4  
1. The Commission shall provide notice to Korea of the 
Union’s intention not to extend the period of entitlement to 
co-production pursuant to Article 5 of the Protocol on cultural 
cooperation following the procedure set out in Article 5(8) 
thereof unless, on a proposal from the Commission, the Council agrees four months before the end of such period of 
entitlement to continue the entitlement. If the Council agrees to 
continue the entitlement this provision shall again become 
applicable at the end of the renewed period of entitlement. 
For the specific purposes of deciding on the continuation of 
the period of entitlement, the Council shall act by unanimity.  
2. For the purposes of Article 10.25 of the Agreement, 
modifications of the Agreement through decisions of the 
Working Group on Geographical Indications shall be 
approved by the Commission on behalf of the Union. Where 
interested parties cannot reach agreement following objections 
relating to a geographical indication, the Commission shall 
adopt such a position on the basis of the procedure laid 
down in Article 15(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 
510/2006 of 20 March 2006 on the protection of geographical 
indications and designations of origin for agricultural products 
and foodstuffs (  1 ). The period referred to in Article 5(6) of 
Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down 
the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers 
conferred on the Commission (  2 ) shall be set at one month.  
Article 5  
1. A name protected under Sub-Section C ‘Geographical indi ­
cations’ of Chapter Ten of the Agreement may be used by any 
operator marketing agricultural products, foodstuffs, wines, 
aromatised wines or spirits conforming to the corresponding 
specification.  
2. The Member States and the institutions of the Union shall 
enforce the protection provided for in Articles 10.18 to 10.23 
of the Agreement, including at the request of an interested 
party.  
Article 6  
The position to be taken by the Union in the Committee on 
Cultural Cooperation on decisions having legal effects shall be 
determined by the Council acting in accordance with the Treaty. 
The representatives of the Union in the Committee on Cultural 
Cooperation shall comprise senior officials of both the 
Commission and the Member States who have expertise and 
experience in cultural matters and practices, and who shall 
present the position of the Union in accordance with the Treaty.  
Article 7  
The applicable provision for the purposes of adopting the 
necessary implementing rules for the application of the rules 
contained in Annex II(a) to the Protocol concerning the defi ­
nition of ‘originating products’ and methods of administrative 
cooperation of the Agreement is Article 247a of Council Regu ­
lation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing the 
Community Customs Code (  3 ).EN L 127/2 Official Journal of the European Union 14.5.2011  
( 1 ) OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.  
( 2 ) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.  
( 3 ) OJ L 302, 19.10.1992, p. 1.
Article 8  
The Agreement shall not be construed as conferring rights or imposing obligations which can be directly 
invoked before Union or Member State courts and tribunals.  
Article 9  
This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.  
Done at Brussels, 16 September 2010.  
For the Council  
The President  
S. VANACKEREEN 14.5.2011 Official Journal of the European Union L 127/3