Commission Regulation (EC) No 1484/2003 of 21 August 2003 amending Annexes IIIB and VI to Regulation (EC) No 517/94 as regards quotas for Serbia and Montenegro
Date: 2003-08-21
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Serbia and Montenegro, import, quantitative restriction, textile product

L 212/46

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

22.8.2003

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1484/2003

of 21 August 2003

amending Annexes IIIB and VI to Regulation (EC) No 517/94 as regards quotas for Serbia and
Montenegro

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 517/94 of 7
March 1994 on common rules for imports of textile products
from certain third countries not covered by bilateral agree-
ments, protocols or other arrangements, or by other specific
Community import rules (1), as last amended by Commission
Regulation (EC) No 1309/2002 (2), and in particular Article
5(2) in conjunction with Article 25(4) thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

Regulation (EC) No 517/94 establishes the annual quan-
titative limits for certain textile products originating in
Serbia and Montenegro (3).

Serbia and Montenegro is currently at a critical junction
of its reform process. It is particularly vital at this stage
to support the political and economic reforms under-
taken in this state and to keep the country well on track
in the European Union's Stabilisation and Association
process.

The European Council of 20 and 21 March 2003 offered
the new leadership of Serbia and Montenegro the full
support of the EU in implementing the required reforms,
allowing further progress towards European structures,
and notably the EU, and invited the High Representative
and the Commission to propose concrete steps to that
end.

Improving trade opportunities for Serbia and Monte-
negro in areas in which the country possesses compara-
tive economic advantages is of great
importance to
underpin the country's economic and political reforms
and to further its integration into European structures.

It is therefore important to improve market access speci-
fically for textiles and to review the quotas currently
applicable on imports of textile products originating in
improvement
Serbia and Montenegro. This
reflects the overall strong commitment of the EU to far-
reaching trade liberalisation with the Western Balkan
countries as laid down in Council Regulation (EC) No
2007/2000 (4), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No
607/2003 (5).

further

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

The proposed increase is part of an overall process of
promoting closer trade relations with Serbia and Monte-
negro, which includes the start of negotiations on a
textiles agreement with Serbia and Montenegro to
achieve bilateral liberalisation.

Further imports within the EU of certain categories of
textile products is presently no longer possible because
the respective quotas have been exhausted. Serbia and
Montenegro has requested that the quotas be increased.

It is appropriate to increase the levels of all quotas for
Serbia and Montenegro in order
to absorb certain
pending import requests, as was done for Croatia and
Bosnia Herzegovina for the year 2000 by Council Regu-
lation (EC) No 7/2000 (6) prior to the negotiation of
bilateral textile agreements with those two countries.

The increased quota levels should apply from the begin-
ning of the year 2003 in order to absorb certain pending
import requests.

(10)

Regulation (EC) No 517/94 should therefore be amended
accordingly.

(11)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
accordance with the opinion of the Textiles Committee,
as referred to in Article 25 of Regulation (EC) No 517/
94,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Annexes IIIB and VI
amended as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.

to Regulation (EC) No 517/94 are

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publica-
tion in the Official Journal of the European Union.

(1) OJ L 67, 10.3.1994, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 192, 20.7.2002, p. 1.
(3) Formerly the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY).
(4) OJ L 240, 23.9.2000, p. 1.
(5) OJ L 86, 3.4.2003, p. 18.

It shall apply with effect from 1 January 2003.

(6) OJ L 2, 5.1.2000, p. 51.

22.8.2003

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Official Journal of the European Union

L 212/47

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

Done at Brussels, 21 August 2003.

For the Commission

Pascal LAMY

Member of the Commission

L 212/48

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

22.8.2003

ANNEX

Annexes IIIB and VI to Regulation (EC) No 517/94 are amended as follows:

1. Annex IIIB is replaced by the following:

‘ANNEX III B

Annual Community quantitative limits referred to in the fourth indent of Article 2(1) Serbia and
Montenegro

Category

1

2

2a

3

5

6

7

8

9

15

16

67

2. Annex VI is replaced by the following:

Quantity

2 309

2 848

644

312

1 288

554

287

1 066

292

429

230

241’

Unit

tonnes

tonnes

tonnes

tonnes

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

tonnes

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

tonnes

‘ANNEX VI

OUTWARD PROCESSING TRAFFIC

Annual Community quantitative limits referred to in Article 4 Serbia and Montenegro

Category

Unit

Quantity

5

6

7

8

15

16

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 000 pieces

1 483

4 441

2 170

4 902

2 548

1 374’