EN Official Journal of the European Union L 46/37

COUNCIL DECISION

of 28 January 2008

concerning the conclusion of the Protocol amending the Agreement on maritime transport between the European Community and its Member States, on the one hand, and the People’s Republic of China, on the other hand, to take account of the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union

(2008/144/EC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof in conjunction with the first sentence of the first subparagraph of Article 300(2) and the first subparagraph of Article 300(3) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

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

Whereas:

(1) The Agreement on maritime transport between the European Community and its Member States, on the one hand, and the People’s Republic of China, on the other hand (hereinafter the Agreement), was signed in Brussels on 6 December 2002.

(2) A Protocol amending the Agreement to take account of the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union was signed in Beijing on 5 September 2005.

(3) In accordance with Article 6(2) of the 2005 Act of Accession Bulgaria and Romania are to accede to the Agreement by way of a protocol between the Council and the People’s Republic of China.

(4) The necessary constitutional and institutional procedures have been completed and the Protocol should therefore be approved,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Sole Article

1. The Protocol amending the Agreement on maritime transport between the European Community and its Member States, on the one hand, and the People’s Republic of China, on the other hand, to take account of the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union is hereby approved on behalf of the Community.

The text of the Protocol (2) is attached to this Decision.

2. The President of the Council shall, on behalf of the European Community and its Member States, give the notification provided for in Article 3 of the Protocol.

Done at Brussels, 28 January 2008. For the Council The President D. RUPEL

(1) Opinion delivered on 5 July 2005 (OJ C 157 E, 6.7.2006, p. 53).

(2) See page 38 of this Official Journal.

EN Official Journal of the European Union L 46/38

PROTOCOL

amending the Agreement on maritime transport between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China, of the other part

THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM,

THE CZECH REPUBLIC,

THE KINGDOM OF DENMARK,

THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY,

THE REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA,

THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC,

THE KINGDOM OF SPAIN,

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC,

IRELAND,

THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC,

THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS,

THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA,

THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA,

THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG,

THE REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY,

THE REPUBLIC OF MALTA,

THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS,

THE REPUBLIC OF AUSTRIA,

THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND,

THE PORTUGUESE REPUBLIC,

THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA,

THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC,

THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND,

THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN,

THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND,

hereinafter referred to as the ‘Member States’, represented by the Council of the European Union, and

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Community’, represented by the Council of the European Union,

of the one part, and

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA,

of the other part,

HAVING REGARD TO the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union and thereby to the Community on 1 May 2004,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic shall be Parties to the Agreement on Maritime Transport between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China, of the other part, signed in Brussels on 6 December 2002 (hereinafter called the Agreement).

Article 2

The texts of the Agreement in the Czech, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Maltese, Polish, Slovenian and Slovak languages, which are attached to this Protocol shall become authentic under the same conditions as the other language versions drawn up in accordance with Article 14 of the Agreement.

Article 3

This Protocol shall be approved by the Contracting Parties in accordance with their own procedures. It shall enter into force on the same day the Agreement enters into force. Should however this Protocol be approved by the Contracting Parties on a later date than the entry into force of the Agreement, then the Protocol shall enter into force on the date on which the Parties have notified each other on the accomplishment of the internal procedures for approval.

Article 4

This Protocol is drawn up at Beijing, on this fifth day of September in the year two thousand and five, in duplicate, in the Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Slovenian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish and Chinese languages, each of these texts being equally authentic.