Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) suspending certain agricultural concessions for Turkey and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1506/98
Date: 1999-05-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Türkiye, agricultural product, import restriction, tariff preference, tariff quota

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 27.05.1999
COM(1999)259 final

Proposal for a

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)

suspending certain agricultural concessions for Turkey
and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1506/98

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

The purpose of this proposal for a Regulation is to strengthen the European
Community’s reaction on the import barriers imposed by Turkey on agricultural
products.

In 1996 Turkey banned all imports of live bovines and imposed restrictions on beef
imports. It is the Commission’s belief that such measures are unjustified and represent
a non-tariff barrier to trade, which has a negative economic impact on our exports.
Furthermore the Community is not able to benefit from the concessions granted to it
by Turkey under the Association Council Decision 1/98.

As a first reaction,
the Community, on its side, suspended in July 1998 some
concessions granted to Turkey. These suspensions were, however, of a limited trade
impact, lower than the trade effect of the Turkish measures.

Since then and despite regular requests from the Community, Turkey has not taken
any step to improve the situation.

It is therefore proposed that the Turkish import barriers be now counterbalanced by
replacing the existing set of suspensions by the suspension of the tariff concessions
for certain cucumbers, processed tomatoes and tobacco.

These new measures, intended to protect the Community’s commercial interests, will
be repealed by the Commission once Turkey has lifted the barriers to the preferential
Community exports.

2

Proposal for a

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)

suspending certain agricultural concessions for Turkey
and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1506/98

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular
Article 133 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

(1) Whereas under

the Agreement establishing an Association between the
European Economic Community and Turkey1, hereinafter referred to as ‘the
Agreement’, concessions were granted to that country in respect of certain
agricultural products;

(2) Whereas Decision No 1/98 of

the EC-Turkey Association Council of
25 February 1998 on the trade regime for agricultural products2 provides for
the improvement and consolidation of trade preferences relating to the import
into the Community of agricultural products originating in Turkey and
establishes a series of preferential concessions for Community exports of meat
and live animals to Turkey;

(3) Whereas Turkey has since 1996 been applying a ban on the import of live
animals of the bovine species (CN code 0102) and restrictions on the import of
beef (CN codes 0201-0202); whereas those measures, being quantitative
restrictions, are incompatible with the Agreement and prevent the Community
from benefiting from the concessions granted to it under Decision 1/98;

(4) Whereas, in order to counterbalance the situation by means of equivalent
in July 1998 the Community had already suspended certain
measures,
concessions for Turkey by Regulation (EC) No 1506/98 of 13 July 1998
establishing a concession in the form of a Community tariff quota for Turkey
in 1998 in respect of hazelnuts and suspending certain concessions3;

(5) Whereas despite repeated talks between the Community and Turkey the
quantitative restrictions are still in force; whereas, in order to protect the
Community’s commercial interests, the situation should be counterbalanced
by means of reinforced Community measures; whereas the concessions set out

1

2

3

OJ 217, 29.12.1964, p. 3687/64.
OJ L 86, 20.3.1998, p. 1.
OJ L 200, 16.7.1998, p. 1.

3

in the Annex to this Regulation should therefore be suspended as soon as
possible;

(6) Whereas Regulation (EC) No 1506/98 should be repealed,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

The tariff concessions laid down in Annex of this Regulation are hereby suspended.

Article 1

Article 2

In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 29 of Regulation (EC)
No 2200/96 of 28 October 1996 on the common organization of the market in fruit
and vegetables4 or, as the case may be, in the corresponding Articles of the other
Regulations on the common organisation of markets in agricultural products, or in
Articles 6 and 7 of Regulation (EC) No 1981/94, the Commission shall repeal the
measures referred to in Article 1 once the barriers to preferential exports from the
Community to Turkey have been lifted.

Regulation (EC) No 1506/98 is hereby repealed.

Article 3

Article 4

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

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member
States.

Done at Brussels,

For the Council
The President

4

OJ L 297, 21.11.1996, p. 1.

4

ANNEX

Order
Number

CN code

Description of goods

Volume of quota
per year or per
period indicated
(tonnes)

Rate of duty
applicable

-

2001 10 00 Cucumbers and

Unlimited

Free

09.0207

09.0209

2002 90 31
2002 90 39
2002 90 91
2002 90 99

prepared

gherkins
or
preserved by vinegar or
acetic acid

Tomatoes prepared or
otherwise
preserved
than by vinegar or acetic
acid, other than whole
or in pieces, with a dry
matter content of 12%
or more by weight

Free

30 000 with a dry
matter content of
28-30% by
weight

-

2401 10 60

Sun cured oriental type
tobacco

Unlimited

Free

5

FINANCIAL STATEMENT

1.

2.

3.

4.

BUDGET HEADING: Chapter 10 - Agricultural duties

APPROPRIATIONS: EUR 1 054.5 m

TITLE:

Proposal for a Council Regulation (CE) suspending certain agricultural concessions for Turkey and repealing Regulation (EC)
No 1506/98.

LEGAL BASIS: Article 133 of the Treaty

AIMS:

To suspend certain tariff concessions granted to Turkey to protect Community commercial interests pending the lifting of the
barriers imposed on Community preferential exports.

5.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

5.0

5.1

-
-

-

EXPENDITURE
-

CHARGED TO THE EC BUDGET
(REFUNDS/INTERVENTIONS)
NATIONAL AUTHORITIES
OTHER

REVENUE
-

OWN RESOURCES OF THE EC
LEVIES/CUSTOMS DUTIES)
NATIONAL

5.0.1 ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE
5.1.1 ESTIMATED REVENUE

5.2 METHOD OF CALCULATION:

PERIOD OF
12 MONTHS

(EUR million)

CURRENT
FINANCIAL
YEAR (1999)
(EUR million)

FOLLOWING
FINANCIAL
YEAR (2000)
(EUR million)

-

-

-

-

-

-

2001

2002

2003

2004

-

-

-

-

6.0

6.1

CAN THE PROJECT BE FINANCED FROM APPROPRIATIONS ENTERED IN THE RELEVANT
CHAPTER OF THE CURRENT BUDGET?

CAN THE PROJECT BE FINANCED BY TRANSFER BETWEEN CHAPTERS OF THE CURRENT
BUDGET?

6.2 WILL A SUPPLEMENTARY BUDGET BE NECESSARY?

6.3 WILL FUTURE BUDGET APPROPRIATIONS BE NECESSARY?

OBSERVATIONS:

YES / NO

YES / NO

YES / NO

YES / NO

Given that the imports covered by the measure were exempt from duty and that the high level of the full rates of duty suggests that the
flow of imports will practically cease as a result of suspension of exemption, it is assumed that the financial impact on the Community
budget will be negligible.

6