Decision No 1/2000 of the EC-Mexico Joint Council of 23 March 2000 established by the Interim Agreement on Trade and Trade-related matters between the European Community, of the one part, and the United Mexican States, of the other part, of 8 December 1997 adopting its rules of procedure - Rules of procedure of the Joint Committee
Date: 2000-03-23
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: Council of the European Union, Mexico, interim agreement (EU), rules of procedure, trade agreement (EU)

L 157/6

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

30.6.2000

II

(Acts whose publication is not obligatory)

COUNCIL

DECISION No 1/2000 OF THE EC-MEXICO JOINT COUNCIL

of 23 March 2000

established by the Interim Agreement on Trade and Trade-related matters between the European
Community, of the one part, and the United Mexican States, of the other part, of 8 December 1997
adopting its rules of procedure

(2000/414/EC)

THE JOINT COUNCIL,

Having regard to the Interim Agreement on trade and trade
related matters between the European Community of the one
part, and the United Mexican States, of the other part, signed in
Brussels on 8 December 1997, hereinafter referred to as
‘Interim Agreement’ and in particular Articles 7 to 11 thereof,

Whereas that Interim Agreement entered into force on 1 July
1998,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Presidency

The Joint Council shall be presided over alternatively for
periods of twelve months by a member of the Council of the
European Union, on behalf of the Community, and a member
of the Secretaría de Comercio y Fomento Industrial (hereinafter
referred to as SECOFI), on behalf of Mexico. However the first
period of presidency shall start on the date on which the first
takes place and end on 31
meeting of
December of the same year.

the Joint Council

Article 2

Meetings

1.
The Joint Council shall meet at ministerial level, at regular
intervals and when circumstances require if the Parties so agree.

Each session of the Joint Council shall be held in a place

2.
mutually agreed by the Parties.

The meetings of the Joint Council are jointly convened by

3.
the Secretaries of the Joint Council.

Article 3

Representation

The members of the Joint Council may be represented if

1.
they are prevented from attending.

A member wishing to be represented shall notify the
2.
Chairman of the name of this representative before the meeting
at which he is to be so represented. The representative of a
member of the Joint Council shall exercise all the rights of that
member.

Article 4

Delegations

The members of the Joint Council may be accompanied by
officials. Before each meeting,
the Joint
Council shall be informed of the intended composition and of
the Head of the delegation of each Party.

the Chairman of

Article 5

Secretariat

An official of the General Secretariat of the Council of the
European Union and an official of SECOFI shall act jointly as
Secretaries of the Joint Council.

Article 6

Documents

When the deliberations of the Joint Council are based on
written supporting documents,
shall be
numbered and circulated as documents of the Joint Council by
the two Secretaries.

such documents

30.6.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 157/7

Article 7

Correspondence

All correspondence addressed to the Joint Council or to
the Council shall be forwarded to both

1.
the Chairman of
Secretaries of the Joint Council.

2.
The two Secretaries shall ensure that correspondence is
forwarded to the Chairman of the Joint Council and, where
appropriate, circulated as documents referred to in Article 6 to
other members of the Joint Council. Correspondence circulated
shall be sent to the Secretariat General of the Commission, the
Permanent Representations of the Member States and SECOFI.

3.
Correspondence from the Chairman of the Joint Council
shall be sent to the recipients by the respective Secretary and,
where appropriate, circulated as documents referred to in
Article 6 to the other members of the Joint Council at the
addressees indicated in paragraph 2.

Article 8

Agenda for the meetings

1.
A provisional agenda for each meeting shall be drawn up
by the Secretaries of the Joint Council on the basis of sugges-
tions by the Parties. It shall be forwarded by the corresponding
Secretary to the addressees referred to in Article 7 not later
than fifteen days before the beginning of the meeting.

The provisional agenda shall include the items in respect of
which a request for inclusion in the agenda has been received
by either of the two Secretaries not later than 21 days before
the beginning of the meeting, save that items shall not be
written into the provisional agenda unless the supporting docu-
mentation has been forwarded to the Secretaries not later than
the date of dispatch of the provisional agenda.

The agenda shall be adopted by the Joint Council at the begin-
ning of each meeting. An item other than those appearing on
the provisional agenda may be placed on the agenda if the two
Parties so agree.

In agreement with the Parties, the time limits specified in
2.
paragraph 1 may be shortened in order to take account of the
requirements of a particular case.

Article 9

Minutes

Draft minutes of each meeting shall be drawn up as soon

1.
as possible jointly by the two Secretaries.

The minutes shall, as a general rule, indicate in respect of

2.
each item on the agenda:

(a) the documentation submitted to the Joint Council;

(b) statements which a member of

the Joint Council has

requested to be entered;

(c) the decisions taken, the recommendations made, the state-
ments agreed upon and the conclusions adopted on specific
items.

3.
The minutes shall also include a list of members of the
Joint Council or their representatives who participated at the
meeting.

4.
The draft minutes shall be submitted to the Joint Council
for approval at its next meeting. The draft minutes also can be
two
agreed in writing by both Parties. When approved,
authentic copies of the minutes shall be signed by the two
Secretaries and be filed by the Parties. A copy of the minutes
shall be forwarded to each of the addressees referred to in
Article 7.

Article 10

Decisions and recommendations

The Joint Council shall take decisions and make recom-

1.
mendations by mutual agreement between the Parties.

During the inter-session period, the Joint Council may adopt a
decision or make recommendations by written procedure if
both Parties so agree.

A written procedure consists of an exchange of notes between
the two Secretaries, acting in agreement with the Parties.

2.
The decisions and recommendations of the Joint Council
within the meaning of Article 9 of the Interim Agreement shall
respectively,
be
followed by a serial number, by the date of their adoption and
by a description of their subject.

and ‘recommendation’

entitled ‘decision’

3.
The decisions and recommendations of the Joint Council
shall be authenticated by the two Secretaries and two authentic
copies signed by Heads of delegation of the two Parties.

4.
Decisions and recommendations shall be forwarded to
each of the addressees referred to in Article 7 as documents of
the Joint Council.

Article 11

Publicity

Unless otherwise decided,

1.
Council shall not be public.

the meetings of

the Joint

2.
Each Party may decide on the publication of the decisions
and the recommendations of the Joint Council in its respective
official publication.

Article 12

Languages

The official languages of the Joint Council shall be the

1.
official

languages of the Parties.

Unless otherwise decided,

2.
shall
normally base its deliberations and take its decisions on docu-
mentation and proposals prepared in these languages.

Joint Council

the

L 157/8

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

30.6.2000

Article 13

Expenses

1.
The European Community and the United Mexican States
shall each defray the expenses they incur by reason of their
participation in the meetings of the Joint Council, both with
regard to staff, travel and subsistence expenditure and to postal
and telecommunications expenditure.

2.
Expenditure in connection with organisation of meetings,
translation and reproduction of
interpretation at meetings,
documents shall be borne by the Party which hosts the
meeting.

Article 14

Joint Committee

1.
A Joint Committee is hereby established in accordance
with Article 10 of the Interim Agreement in order to assist the
in the performance of its duties.
Joint Council

2.
The Joint Committee shall be composed of representa-
tives of the Commission assisted by representatives of the

Member States on the one hand, and of representatives of
SECOFI on the other, normally at senior civil servant level.

3.
The Joint Committee shall prepare the meetings and the
deliberations of the Joint Council, monitor the implementation
of the decisions and recommendations of the Joint Council
where appropriate and, in general, the proper functioning of
the Interim Agreement. It shall consider any matter referred to
it by the Joint Council as well as any other matter, which may
arise in the course of the day-to-day implementation of the
Interim Agreement. It shall submit any proposals of decisions
and recommendations for adoption to the Joint Council.

The rules of procedure of

4.
attached as Annex to this Decision.

the Joint Committee are

Done at Lisbon, 23 March 2000.

For the Joint Council

The President

J. GAMA

30.6.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 157/9

ANNEX

RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE

Article 1

Presidency

Every meeting of the Joint Committee shall be presided alternatively by
a representative of the Commission of the European Communities and
a representative of SECOFI, normally at senior civil servant level.

Article 2

Meetings

inclusion in the agenda not later than 21 days before the beginning of
the meeting, save that items shall not be written into the provisional
agenda unless the supporting documentation has been forwarded to the
Secretaries not later than the date of dispatch of the provisional agenda.
The agenda shall be adopted by the Joint Committee at the beginning of
each meeting. An item other than those appearing on the provisional
agenda may be placed on the agenda if the two Parties so agree.

2.
In agreement with the Parties the time limits specified in para-
graph 1 may be shortened in order to take account of the requirements
of a particular case.

The Joint Committee shall meet once a year or when circumstances
require with the agreement of the Parties. Each meeting of the Joint
Committee shall be jointly convened by both Secretaries and held
alternatively in Brussels and Mexico at a time agreed by the Parties.

Article 7

Minutes

Article 3

Delegations

Before each meeting, the Chairman of the Joint Committee shall be
informed of the intended composition and the Head of the delegation
of each Party.

Minutes shall be taken for each meeting and shall be based on a
summing up by the Chairman of the conclusions arrived at by the Joint
Committee. Upon adoption by the Joint Committee, the minutes shall
be signed by the Chairman and by the Secretaries and filed by each of
the Parties. A copy of the minutes shall be forwarded to the Chairman
and Secretaries of the Joint Council and to the members of the Joint
Committee.

Article 4

Secretariat

Article 8

Decisions and recommendations

1.
An official of the Commission of the European Community and
an official of the SECOFI shall act jointly as Secretaries of the Joint
Committee.

All correspondence to and from the Chairman of

the Joint
2.
Committee provided for in these Rules of Procedure shall be forwarded
to the Secretaries of the Joint Committee and to the Secretaries and the
Chairman of the Joint Council and where appropriate, to the members
of the Joint Committee.

Article 5

Publicity

Unless otherwise decided, the meetings of the Joint Committee shall not
be public.

Article 6

Agenda for the meetings

the Joint Committee.

A provisional agenda for each meeting shall be drawn up by the
1.
It shall be forwarded to the
Secretaries of
Chairman and Secretaries of
the Joint Council as well as to the
members of the Joint Committee not later than 15 days before the
beginning of the meeting. The provisional agenda shall
include the
items in respect of which the Chairman has received a request for

1.
In those cases where the Joint Committee is empowered to take
decisions or make recommendations in accordance with Article 10(2)
of the Interim Agreement, those acts shall be entitled ‘decisions’ or
‘recommendation’, followed by a serial number, by the date of their
adoption and by description of their subject.

2. Where the Joint Committee adopts a decison or makes a recom-
mendation, the provisions of Articles 10, 11 and 12 of Decision No
1/2000 of the EU-Mexico Joint Council adopting its rules of procedure
shall apply mutatis mutandis.

The decisons and recommendations of the Joint Committee shall

3.
be forwarded to each of the addressees mentioned in Article 4.

Article 9

Expenses

1.
The European Community and the United Mexican States shall
each defray the expenses they incur by reason of their participation in
the meetings of the Joint Committee, both with regard to staff, travel
and subsistence expenditure and to postal and telecommunications
expenditure.

2.
Expenditure in connection with the material organisation and the
interpretation at meetings, translation and reproduction of documents
shall be borne by the Party which hosts the meetings.