Agreement between the Kingdom of Norway and the European Union on security procedures for the exchange of classified information
Date: 2004-11-22
Institutions: European Union, Norway
Subjects: Norway, agreement (EU), confidentiality, data protection, disclosure of information, exchange of information

9.12.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 362/29

between the Kingdom of Norway and the European Union on security procedures for the exchange
of classified information

AGREEMENT

THE KINGDOM OF NORWAY,

of the one part, and

THE EUROPEAN UNION,

hereafter the EU, represented by the Presidency of the Council of the European Union

of the other part,

hereinafter referred to as the Parties,

CONSIDERING THAT the Kingdom of Norway and the EU share the objectives to strengthen their own security in all
ways and to provide their citizens with a high level of safety within an area of security;

CONSIDERING THAT the Kingdom of Norway and the EU agree that consultations and cooperation should be developed
between them on questions of common interest relating to security;

CONSIDERING THAT, in this context, a permanent need therefore exists to exchange classified information between the
Kingdom of Norway and the EU;

RECOGNISING THAT full and effective consultation and cooperation may require access to Norway and EU classified
information and material, as well as the exchange of classified information and related material between the Kingdom of
Norway and the EU;

CONSCIOUS THAT such access to, and exchange of, classified information and related material require appropriate
security measures,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Article 4

In order to fulfil the objectives of strengthening the security of
each of the Parties in all ways, this Agreement shall apply to
classified information or material in any form either provided or
exchanged between the Parties.

Each Party shall:

Article 2

For the purposes of this Agreement, classified information shall
mean any information (namely, knowledge that can be commu-
nicated in any form) or material determined to require
protection against unauthorised disclosure and which has been
so designated by a security classification (hereafter classified
information).

(a) protect and safeguard classified information subject to this
Agreement provided or exchanged by the other Party;

(b) ensure that classified information subject to this Agreement
provided or exchanged keeps the security classification given
to it by the providing Party. The receiving Party shall protect
and safeguard the classified information according to the
provisions set out in its own security regulations for infor-
mation or material holding an equivalent security classifi-
cation, as specified in the Security Arrangements to be
established pursuant to Articles 11 and 12;

Article 3

For the purposes of this Agreement, ‘EU’ shall mean the Council of
the European Union (hereafter Council), the Secretary General/
High Representative and the General Secretariat of the Council,
and the Commission of the European Communities (hereafter
European Commission).

(c) not use

to this
such classified information subject
Agreement for purposes other than those established by
the originator and those for which the information is
provided or exchanged;

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Official Journal of the European Union

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(d) not disclose such classified information subject

to this
Agreement to third parties, or to any EU institution or
entity not mentioned in Article 3, without
the prior
consent of the originator.

Article 5

1.
in
Classified information may be disclosed or released,
accordance with the principle of originator control, by one
‘the receiving
Party,
Party’.

‘the providing Party’, to the other Party,

For release to recipients other than the Parties to this
2.
Agreement, a decision on disclosure or release of classified
information shall be made by the receiving Party following
the consent of the providing Party,
in accordance with the
principle of originator control as defined in its security regu-
lations.

3.
In implementing paragraphs 1 and 2, no generic release
shall be possible unless procedures are established and agreed
between the Parties regarding certain categories of information,
relevant to their operational requirements.

Article 6

Each of the Parties, and entities thereof as defined in Article 3,
shall have a security organisation and security programmes,
based upon such basic principles and minimum standards of
security which shall be implemented in the security systems of
the Parties to be established pursuant to Articles 11 and 12, to
ensure that an equivalent level of protection is applied to clas-
sified information subject to this Agreement.

Article 7

functions may afford access,

1.
in the
The Parties shall ensure that all persons who,
conduct of their official duties require access, or whose duties
or
to classified information
provided or exchanged under this Agreement are appropriately
security cleared before they are granted access to such infor-
mation.

2.
The security clearance procedures shall be designed to
determine whether an individual can, taking into account his
or her loyalty, trustworthiness and reliability, have access to
classified information.

Article 8

The parties shall provide mutual assistance with regard to
security of classified information subject
to this Agreement
and matters of common security interest. Reciprocal security
consultations and inspections shall be conducted by the autho-
rities as defined in Article 11 to assess the effectiveness of the
Security Arrangements within their respective responsibility to
be established pursuant to Articles 11 and 12.

Article 9

1.

For the purpose of this Agreement:

(a) as regards the EU:

all correspondence shall be sent
following address:

to the Council at

the

Council of the European Union
Chief Registry Officer
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, 175
B-1048 Brussels.

All correspondence shall be forwarded by the Chief Registry
Officer of the Council to the Member States and to the
European Commission subject to paragraph 2;

(b) as regards the Kingdom of Norway:

all correspondence shall be addressed to the Chief Registry
Officer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway and
forwarded via the Mission of Norway to the European
Union, at the following address:

Mission of Norway to the European Union
Registry Officer
Rue Archimède/Archimedesstraat, 17
B-1000 Brussels.

for operational

that Party may,

2.
Exceptionally, correspondence from one Party which is
only accessible to specific competent officials, organs or
reasons, be
services of
competent
addressed and only be
officials, organs or services of
the other Party specifically
designated as recipients, taking into account their competencies
and according to the need to know principle. As far as the EU is
concerned, this correspondence shall be transmitted through the
Chief Registry Officer of the Council.

to specific

accessible

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Article 10

Article 14

The Norwegian Ministry of Defence and the Secretaries-General
of the Council and of the European Commission shall oversee
the implementation of this Agreement.

Prior to the provision of classified information subject to this
Agreement between the Parties, the responsible security autho-
rities defined in Article 11 must agree that the receiving Party is
able to protect and safeguard the information subject to this
Agreement in a way consistent with the arrangements to be
established pursuant to Articles 11 and 12.

Article 11

In order to implement this Agreement:

the Government of Norway and under
shall be

1. the Norwegian National Security Authority, acting in the
name of
its
responsible for developing Security
authority,
Arrangements for the protection and safeguarding of clas-
sified information provided to the Kingdom of Norway
under this Agreement;

2. the General Secretariat of the Council Security Office, under
the direction and on behalf of the Secretary General of the
Council, acting in the name of the Council and under its
authority shall be
for developing Security
Arrangements for the protection and safeguarding of clas-
sified information provided to the EU under this Agreement;

responsible

3. the European Commission Security Directorate, acting in the
name of the European Commission and under its authority,
shall be responsible for developing Security Arrangements
for the protection of classified information provided or
this Agreement within the European
exchanged under
Commission and its premises.

Article 12

The Security Arrangements to be established pursuant to Article
11 in agreement between the three Offices concerned will lay
down the standards of the reciprocal security protection for
classified information subject to this Agreement. For the EU,
these standards shall be subject to approval by the Council
Security Committee.

Article 13

The authorities defined in Article 11 shall establish procedures
to be followed in the case of proven or suspected compromise
of classified information subject to this Agreement.

Article 15

in no way prevent

the Parties from
This Agreement shall
concluding other Agreements
relating to the provision or
exchange of classified information subject to this Agreement
provided that they do not conflict with the provisions of this
Agreement.

Article 16

All differences between the EU and the Kingdom of Norway
arising out of
this
interpretation or
Agreement shall be dealt with by negotiation between the
Parties.

application of

the

Article 17

1.
This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of
the first month after the Parties have notified each other of the
completion of
this
purpose.

the internal procedures necessary for

This Agreement may be reviewed for consideration of

2.
possible amendments at the request of either Party.

3.
Any amendment to this Agreement shall only be made in
writing and by common agreement of the Parties. It shall enter
into force upon mutual notification as provided under
paragraph 1.

Article 18

This Agreement may be denounced by one Party by written
notice of denunciation given to the other Party. Such denun-
ciation shall take effect six months after receipt of notification
by the other Party, but shall not affect obligations already
contracted under the provisions of this Agreement. In particular,
all classified information provided or exchanged pursuant to
this Agreement shall continue to be protected in accordance
with the provisions set forth herein.

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Official Journal of the European Union

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, respectively duly authorised, have signed this Agreement.

Done at Brussels, this day of 22 November 2004 in two copies each in the English language.

For the Kingdom of Norway

For the European Union