1.

Recommends that the Council, the Commission and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy: (a) seize the opportunity presented by the negotiations on the association agreement to demonstrate the value of closer relations and integration with the EU — looking at public opinion both in Andorra, Monaco and San Marino and in the EU — and to further reaffirm the importance of inclusion in EU bodies and policies for such countries in the longer term; (b) prevent the risk of rejection of the association agreement once negotiations have been finalised, and engage in renewed efforts to provide those members of the public in Andorra, Monaco and San Marino who feel more vulnerable with information about the association agreement and to explain to them, in total transparency and in cooperation with the authorities of the three states, the scope, merits and possible shortcomings of the agreement, with a view to political unity and the broadest possible public support in each of the three states; encourage Andorra, Monaco and San Marino to do the same, and support them in such an endeavour; (c) take full account of the small territorial dimensions and limited administrative resources, in relative terms, of Andorra, Monaco and San Marino and, in the negotiation process, adjust the required adoption and implementation of the acquis communautaire accordingly, so as to minimise excessive budgetary pressure, which would in turn have negative implications on public opinion and the budgetary resources available; provide assistance, where needed, to Andorra, Monaco and San Marino in providing for the necessary administrative capacity to ensure swift, dynamic and uniform transposition of the acquis communautaire; (d) call for the creation, in each of the three states, of a coherent, efficient and effective institutional framework through which to implement the association agreement, in order to ensure the dynamic transposition of the acquis communautaire by the three countries and the uniform application and consistent interpretation of the provisions of the agreement, which must include a forum for consultation and a dispute resolution mechanism; (e) emphasise to Andorra, Monaco and San Marino the importance of the overall integrity and homogeneity of the internal market and of respect for the fundamental aspects of all four freedoms of the internal market; recall the merits and economic benefits of full access, including for products and services, to the internal market and the need to preserve within it a level playing field and strong, resilient and effective institutional foundations to the benefit of all; (f) provide for adequate EU support to Andorra, Monaco and San Marino, as regards their capacity to fully adopt and implement the acquis communautaire on a longer-term basis, including through closer institutional cooperation with the Member States in the immediate proximity; provide for access to EU funding for targeted projects and for the possibility of relying on existing administrative bodies in the Member States dedicated to the implementation of the acquis communautaire; (g) foster increased capacity for adequate adoption and implementation of the acquis communautaire through the secondment of officials from the public administrations of Andorra, Monaco and San Marino to relevant EU institutions and bodies and those of its Member States; (h) consider, in the light of the need to reconcile the freedom of establishment envisaged under the association agreement and national provisions in Andorra, Monaco and San Marino seeking to preserve the socio-economic inclusion of their citizens, the possibility of temporary derogations, premised on an assessment of the real needs of the three states, subject to review clauses, anchored to specific socio-economic criteria for each negotiating state and adjusted to the timeframe required to ensure, in each state and through a gradual approach, a true level playing field and adequate competitive capacity for workers and companies; take note of the fact that the very small size of these countries is such that the impact of negotiated temporary derogations on the acquis communautaire would be negligible; (i) harness the opportunity of the Association Agreement to further cooperation with Andorra, Monaco and San Marino within the framework of Directive (EU) 2015/849 of 20 May 2015 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing (1); (j) adjust the requirements related to the provision of statistical data under the association agreement to the size of Andorra, Monaco and San Marino; (k) explore the possibility and feasibility, in parallel with negotiations on the association agreement, of securing access to Eurosystem liquidity for Andorra and San Marino, with a view to fostering the resilience capacity and stability of their respective national banking systems in the case of an internal or external systemic shock, while ensuring proper oversight by the European Central Bank; encourage Andorra and Monaco to become members of the International Monetary Fund and provide them, if needed, with technical assistance to this effect; encourage Andorra, Monaco and San Marino to continue their good efforts vis-à-vis convergence with the EU as regards financial regulation, tax governance and the fight against money laundering; (l) advance negotiations on the association agreement with Andorra, Monaco and San Marino and provide the negotiating parties with all necessary institutional and policy-specific support in a timely fashion, including assessments and expertise from the Commission’s competent Directorates-General, so that negotiations can be completed as soon as possible and, in any case, within the next two years; (m) conclude before the end of the current mandate a joint political declaration with Andorra, Monaco and San Marino on the framework of the association agreement, in order to take stock of and preserve the progress achieved in the negotiations thus far, so that the new Commission and the European External Action Service can take stock of and build on this common understanding and advance negotiations further; (n) consider the negotiations on the association agreement an opportunity to take measures for joint investments in infrastructure of common interest, as well as measures aiming to boost joint academic research among Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the EU Member States;