Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union on the security procedures for the exchange of classified information
Date: 2005-06-13
Institutions: European Union, Ukraine
Subjects: Ukraine, agreement (EU), confidentiality, data protection, disclosure of information, exchange of information

L 172/84

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

5.7.2005

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

AGREEMENT

UKRAINE

of the one part, and

THE EUROPEAN UNION, hereinafter 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 Ukraine 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 Ukraine 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
Ukraine and the EU;

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

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

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Article 4

In order to fulfill 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.

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 (hereinafter classified
information).

Article 3

the European Union (hereinafter Council),

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

Each Party shall:

(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 established
pursuant to Article 11;

(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;

(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.

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Article 5

Article 9

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,

1.

For the purpose of the present Agreement

(a) As regards the EU:

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.

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.

In implementing paragraphs 1 and 2,

3.
the release of
batches of specific categories of classified information relevant
to operational requirements shall only be possible provided that
appropriate procedures are established and agreed between the
Parties.

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 Ukraine:

Article 6

Ukraine and the EU and the entities of the latter as defined in
Article 3 of this Agreement shall have a security organisation,
security regulations and security programmes, based upon such
basic principles and minimum standards of security which shall
be implemented in the security systems of the Parties estab-
to ensure that an equivalent
lished pursuant
level of protection is applied to classified information subject
to this Agreement.

to Article 11,

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
to classified information
or
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 may have access to classified
information, taking into account the requirements,
including
those for establishing their trustworthiness and reliability, laid
down in regulations and guidelines established by each of the
Parties.

Article 8

The Parties shall provide mutual assistance with regard to
to this Agreement
security of classified information subject
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
established pursuant to Article 11.

all correspondence shall be addressed to the Chief of the EU
Documentation Central Registry Office of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, at the following address:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
Chief of the EU Documentation Central Registry Office
Mykhailivska square, 1
01018 Kiev
Ukraine.

accessible

to specific

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
addressed and only be
competent
the other Party specifically
officials, organs or services of
designated as recipients, taking into account their competencies
and according to the need-to-know principle. Such corre-
spondence shall be appropriately marked. As
the
European Union is concerned,
this correspondence shall be
transmitted through the Chief Registry Officer of the Council.
As far as Ukraine is concerned, this correspondence shall be
transmitted through the Chief of the EU Documentation Central
Registry Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

far as

Article 10

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and the Secretaries-
General of the Council and of the European Commission shall
oversee the implementation of this Agreement.

Article 11

In

to

order

implement

1.
security
arrangements shall be established between the three authorities
designated in paragraphs 2 to 4 in order to lay down the
standards of
the reciprocal security protection for classified
information subject to this Agreement.

this Agreement,

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Official Journal of the European Union

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The Security Service of Ukraine, acting in the name of
2.
Ukraine and under
shall be responsible for
developing the security arrangements mentioned in paragraph
1 for the protection and safeguarding of classified information
provided to Ukraine under this Agreement.

its authority,

The Security Office of

the General Secretariat of

3.
the
Council, 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 responsible for developing
the security arrangements mentioned in paragraph 1 for the
protection and safeguarding of classified information provided
to the EU under this Agreement.

4.
The European Commission Security Directorate, acting in
the name of the European Commission and under its authority,
shall be responsible for developing the security arrangements
mentioned in paragraph 1 for the protection of classified infor-
mation provided or exchanged under this Agreement within the
European Commission and its premises.

For the EU, these standards shall be subject to approval by

5.
the Council Security Committee.

Article 12

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 13

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 estab-
lished pursuant to Article 11.

Article 14

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 15

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

Article 16

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 17

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.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned,
Agreement.

respectively duly authorised, have signed this

Done at Luxembourg, 13 June 2005 in two copies each in the English language.

For Ukraine

For the European Union