Agreement between the Republic of Iceland and the European Union on security procedures for the exchange of classified information
Date: 2006-06-12
Institutions: European Union, Iceland
Subjects: Iceland, agreement (EU), confidentiality, data protection, disclosure of information, exchange of information

6.7.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 184/35

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

AGREEMENT

THE REPUBLIC OF ICELAND,

of the one part, and

THE EUROPEAN UNION, hereafter referred to as ‘the EU’, represented by the Presidency of the Council of the European
Union,

of the other part,

hereafter referred to as the ‘Parties’,

CONSIDERING THAT the Republic of Iceland and the EU share the objectives of strengthening 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 Republic of Iceland 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
Republic of Iceland and the EU,

RECOGNISING THAT full and effective consultation and cooperation may require access to Iceland and EU classified
information and material, as well as the exchange of classified information and related material between the Republic of
Iceland 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).

Article 3

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

(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;

(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

6.7.2006

(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.

Security Arrangements within their respective responsibility to
be established pursuant to Articles 11 and 12.

Article 5

1.

For the purpose of this Agreement:

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,

(a) As regards the EU:

2.
For release to recipients other than the Parties to this
Agreement, a decision on disclosure or release of classified
information shall be made by the receiving Party following
in accordance with the
the consent of the providing Party,
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

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.

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.

Article 6

(b) As regards The Republic of Iceland:

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
level of protection is applied to
ensure that an equivalent
classified 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
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 can, taking into account his
or her loyalty, trustworthiness and reliability, have access to
classified information.

all correspondence shall be addressed to the Director of the
Political Department of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of
the Republic of Iceland and forwarded, where appropriate,
via the Mission of Iceland to the European Union, at the
following address:

Mission of Iceland to the European Union

Registry Officer
Rond Point Schuman 11
B-1040 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

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

The Permanent Secretary of State of the Ministry for Foreign
Affairs of the Republic of Iceland and the Secretaries-General of
the Council and of the European Commission shall oversee the
implementation of this Agreement.

Article 10

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Article 11

In order to implement this Agreement:

1. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Iceland,
acting in the name of the Government of the Republic of
Iceland and under its authority, shall be responsible for
developing security arrangements for the protection and
safeguarding of
classified information provided to the
Republic of Iceland under this Agreement.

2. The General Secretariat of

the Council Security Office
(hereafter GSC Security Office), under the direction and on
behalf of the Secretary-General of the Council, acting in the
its authority shall be
name of
responsible for developing Security Arrangements for the
protection and
information
provided to the EU under this Agreement.

the Council and under

safeguarding of

classified

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.

provided that they do not conflict with the provisions of this
Agreement.

Article 16

All differences between the EU and the Republic of Iceland
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
this
completion of
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 12

Article 18

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

these standards shall be subject

Article 13

The responsible security 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.

This Agreement may be denounced by one Party by written
notice given to the other Party. Such denunciation 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 infor-
mation provided or exchanged pursuant to this Agreement shall
continue to be protected in accordance with the provisions set
forth herein.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF
authorised, have signed this Agreement.

the undersigned,

respectively duly

Article 14

Done at Luxembourg, this twelfth day of June two thousand
and six in two copies each in the English language.

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 15

the Parties from
This Agreement shall
concluding other agreements
relating to the provision or
exchange of classified information subject to this Agreement

in no way prevent

For The Republic of Iceland

For the European Union