COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
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Brussels, 23.07.1996 
COM(96) 380 final 
96/0191 (ACC) 
Proposal for a 
COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) 
amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1981/94 opening and providing for the 
administration of Community tariff quotas for certain products originating in 
Algeria, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Malta, Morocco, the West Bank and the 
Gaza Strip, Tunisia and Turkey, and providing detailed rules for extending and 
adapting these tariff quotas 
(presented by the Commission) 

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 
Council Regulation (EC) No 1981/94 of 25 July 1994, opening and providing for the 
administration of Community tariff quotas for certain products originating in the 
Mediterranean countries, as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 
1099/96 of 19 June 1996, established in its Annex IV the tariff quotas granted to 
certain products originating in Morocco under the cooperation agreement between that 
country and the Community. 
As a result of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations, the reference price 
arrangements stipulating payment of a countervailing charge on the import of certain 
fruit and vegetables has been replaced by a system of specific customs duties linked to 
the entry price. 
Negotiations have been held with Morocco with a view to sign an association 
agreement containing, inter alia, provisions relating to the adjustment of the existing 
concessions. This agreement includes arrangements on the quantities of tomatoes, 
courgettes, artichokes, cucumbers, clémentines and oranges eligible for a reduction in 
the entry price and on an adjustment to the tariff quotas for flowers. It was agreed in 
the Council to implement these concessions at the earliest possible opportunity without 
waiting for the conclusion of the agreement by the Community and its ratification by 
the Member States. 
Council Regulation (EC) No 3057/95 of 22 December 1995 amending Regulation 
(EC) N° 1981/94 brought these concessions into application from 1 November 1995. 
A quantity of 5 000 tonnes of tomatoes, equivalent to the quota for October, could not 
be taken into account when this regulation was adopted because the date of approval 
of the measure was out of step with the period during which these imports are made. 
It is therefore necessary to complete the Council's political undertaking, by amending 
Regulation (EC) N° 1981/94. 
For the sake of efficiency and the timely publication of regulations implementing the 
tariff quotas provided in the new Euro-Mediterranean Agreements, it is proposed to 
authorize the Commission to make, on the advice of the Customs Code Committee, 
any adaptation of Regulation (EC) N° 1981/94 made necessary by the entry into force 
of the new agreements. 
This is the purpose of the present proposal for a regulation. 
1 
Proposal for a 
COUNCIL REGULATION (ECi 
amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1981/94 opening and providing for the 
administration of Community tariff quotas for certain products originating in Algeria, 
Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Malta, Morocco, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, 
Tunisia and Turkey, and providing detailed rules for extending and adapting these tariff 
quotas 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
113 thereof, 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
Whereas Council Regulation (EC) No 1981/94 of 25 July 94 opening and providing for the 
administration of Community tariff quotas for certain products originating in Algeria, Cyprus, 
Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Malta, Morocco, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, Tunisia and 
Turkey, and providing detailed rules for extending and adapting these tariff quotas, ' as last 
amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1099/96,2 opens in its Annex IV Community 
tariff quotas for certain products originating in Morocco as provided for under the cooperation 
agreements between the Community and that country; 
Whereas, as a result of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations, the reference 
price arrangements stipulating payment of a countervailing charge on the import of certain fruit 
and vegetables have been replaced by a system of specific customs duties linked to the entry 
price; 
Whereas, the negotiations held with Morocco resulted in the conclusion of an association 
agreement containing, inter alia, provisions relating to the adjustment of the existing 
concessions; whereas this agreement contains specific provisions relating to the quantities of 
tomatoes, courgettes, artichokes, cucumbers, clémentines and oranges eligible for a reduction 
in the entry price and relating to an adjustment to the tariff quotas for flowers; whereas it has 
been decided in the Council to implement these concessions as early as possible, without 
waiting for the conclusion of the agreement by the Community and its ratification by the 
Member States; 
Whereas Council Regulation (EC) N° 3057/95 of 22 December 19953 amending Regulation 
(EC) N° 1981/94, brought these concession into application; whereas when that regulation was 
being adopted it was impossible to take account of a quantity of 5 000 tonnes of tomatoes, 
which is equivalent to the quota for October, because the date of approval of the measure was 
out of step with the period when these imports are made; whereas Regulation (EC) N° 1981/94 
should therefore be amended so as to abide by Council's political undertaking; 
1 OJ No L 199, 02.08.1994, p. 1. 
2 OJ No L 146, 20.06.1996, p. 8. 
3 OJ No L 326, 30.12.1995, p. 3. 
3 
Whereas for the sake of efficiency and the timely publication of regulations implementing the 
tariff quotas provided in the new Euro-Mediterranean agreements, it should be provided that 
the Commission can make, on the advice of the Customs Code Committee, any adaptation of 
regulation (EC) N° 1981/94 made necessary by the entry into force of these new agreements 
between the Community and the countries in question, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 
Article 1 
Regulation (EC) N° 1981/94 shall be amended as follows: 
1. The text of Article 6 (1) (c) is replaced by the following text: 
"the necessary adaptations arising from the conclusion of agreements, protocols or 
exchanges of letters between the Community and the countries referred to in this 
regulation; and 
2. The fourth indent of Article 6 (2) is deleted. 
3. In Annexe IV on the Community tariff quotas for certain products originating in Morocco, 
order N° 09.1189 is inserted as follows: 
Order 
No 
09.1189 CN code 
0702 00 40 Taric 
sub­
division Description 
Tomatoes, fresh or chilled: 
- From 1 to 31 October Quota 
volume per 
year or 
indicated 
period 
(in tonnes) 
5 000 
(5X6) Rate 
of duty 
(%) 
a 
At the end of the table relating to Morocco, the first indent of footnote (5) shall be 
replaced by the following: 
"— ECU 492/tonne for tomatoes, from 1 October to 31 December 1996 and 
ECU484/tonneinl997". 
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official 
Journal of the European Communities. 
It shall apply from 1 October 1996. 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member 
States. 
Done at 
For the Council 
The President 
FINANCIAL STATEMENT 
1. Budget headine involved Chapter 12, Article 120 
2. Legal basis Article 113 of the Treaty 
3. Title of operation 
Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 1981/94 
opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas for 
certain products originating in Algeria, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Malta, 
Morocco, West Bank and the Gaza Strip, Tunisia and Turkey, and providing 
detailed rules for extending and adapting these tariff quotas 
4 Objective 
Advanced implementation as authorized by the General Affairs Council of 10 
November 1995, of certain provisions of the agricultural part of the future Euro-
Mediterranean between the Community and Morocco, with a view to allowing 
Morocco to maintain its traditional exports of tomatoes during October. 
5. Financial details 
The purpose of this measure is to maintain, for tomatoes imported from Morocco to 
the European Union in October, the arrangements applicable to imports of this product 
before the results of the Uruguay Round of multilateral made negotiations entrained 
into fore. 
CN code : 0702 00 40 
Quota duty rate : identical to CN duty, but 
taking account of a 
conventional entry price above 
which the additional specific 
duty is reduced to zero 
CN duty : 16,8% plus additional specific 
duty linked to the entry price 
The application of this regulation entails no additional loss of revenue in 
comparison with the agreement with Morocco. 
6. Anti-fraud measures 
Provisions on the management of tariff quotas provide the necessary measures to prevent 
and protect against frauds and irregularities. 
& 
ISSN 0254-1475 
COM(96) 380 final 
DOCUMENTS 
EN 02 11 03 
Catalogue number : CB-CO-96-380-EN-C 
ISBN 92-78-07347-4 
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