Proposal for a Council Decision on a Community Position to be adopted in the EC - Montenegro Interim Committee on its Rules of Procedure including the Terms of Reference and Structure of the EC-Montenegro sub-committees
Date: 2007-09-13
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Montenegro, interim agreement (EU), operation of the Institutions, rules of procedure

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 13.9.2007 
COM(2007) 522 final 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on a Community Position to be adopted in the EC - Montenegro Interim Committee 
on its Rules of Procedure including the Terms of Reference 
and Structure of the EC-Montenegro sub-committees 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

A  Stabilisation  and  Association  Agreement  (SAA)  between  the  European  Communities  and 
their  Member  States,  of  the  one  part,  and  the  Republic  of  Montenegro,  of  the  other  part,  is 
planned to be signed in Luxembourg on the 15th of October 2007. It will enter into force on 
the 1st day of the second month following the date on which the Parties notify each other that 
their respective ratification procedures have been completed. 

The  Interim  Agreement  (IA)  between  the  European  Community  and  the  Republic  of 
Montenegro, signed on the same date to allow the early application of trade and trade-related 
provisions of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA), will enter into force on the 
1st  day  of  the  second  month  following  the  date  on  which  the  Parties  notify  each  other  that 
their respective ratification procedures have been completed. 

Article 43 of the IA establishes an Interim Committee which will supervise implementation of 
the same Agreement. This Committee has to adopt –as specified by Article 44 of the IA- its 
own rules of procedures. For the smooth functioning of the Committee, it is desirable to adopt 
these rules of procedure during the first meeting. 

The proposed rules of procedure specify the duties of the Interim Committee and the practices 
which it will need to follow, in accordance with the IA, and take notably into account that the 
Committee  has  been  conferred  decision-making  powers  under  the  Agreement.  The  rules  of 
procedure also create specific sub-committees, as provided for under Article 46 of the IA. The 
Commission proposes to streamline the structure of sub-committees by limiting the number of 
sub-committees  to  five,  which  would  cover  the  different  areas  as  indicated  in  the  Annex  to 
this  Explanatory  Memorandum.  Stabilisation  and  Association  Agreement  areas  not  included 
in  the  IA  will  continue  to  be  discussed  in  the  framework  of  the  Enhanced  Permanent 
Dialogue1 until the entry into force of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement. 

The position to be taken by the Community within the Interim Committee with regard to the 
adoption  of  the  rules  of  procedures  of  the  Interim  Committee  shall  be  determined  by  the 
Council, on a proposal by the Commission. 

It is therefore proposed that the Council approves the attached proposal. 

1 

As  described  in  the  Commission  Communication  on  the  preparedness  of  Serbia  and  Montenegro  to 
negotiate a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the European Union, COM(2005)476 final. 

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ANNEX TO THE EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

EC – THE REPUBLIC OF MONTENEGRO 
INTERIM AGREEMENT ON TRADE AND TRADE-RELATED MATTERS 
SUB-COMMITTEES STRUCTURE 

Sub-Committees Titles 

Issues 

IA (SAA) References 

I. 

Trade, Industry, 
Customs, Taxation and 
Cooperation with other 
candidate countries 

II. 

Agriculture and 

Fisheries 

III. 

Internal Market and 

Competition 

IV. 

Economic and 
Financial Issues and 
Statistics 

Free Movement of Goods 
Industrial Products 
Commercial questions 
Taxation 
Rules of Origin 
Administrative 
customs matters 
Cooperation  with  other  candidate 
countries 

assistance 

in 

Agricultural Products lato sensu  

Agricultural Products stricto sensu  

of 

Fisheries Products 
Processed Agricultural Products 
Wine and Spirit Drinks 
Protection 
geographical 
indications  for  agricultural  and 
fishery  products  and  foodstuffs 
other than wine and spirits 
Other questions related to  Title III 
of the IA 
Competition 

State Aid to the Steel Industry 

Art. 3 (Art. 18) 
Art. 4-8 (Art. 19-23) 
Art. 19-33 (Art. 34-48) 
Art. 22-23 (Art. 37-38) 
Art. 29 (Art. 44), Protocol 3 

Art. 42 (Art. 99), Protocol 6 

Art. 53 (Art.17) 

Art.  9,  11(1),12(1),  16,  17  and 
20 (Art. 24, 26(1), 27(1), 31, 32 
and 35)  
Art.  11(2)(3)  and  12(2)  (Art. 
26(2)(3) and 27(2) 
Art. 14 and 15 (Art. 29 and 30) 
Art. 10 (Art. 25), Protocol 1 
Art. 13 (Art. 28), Protocol 2 

Art. 18 (Art. 33) 

Art. 36 and 37 (Art. 69 and 71) 

Art. 38 and 39 (Art. 73 and 74) 
Art. 38(8) (Art. 73 (8), Protocol 
5 

industrial 

Intellectual, 
commercial property 
Public Procurement 

and 

Art.40 (Art. 75) 

Art. 41 (Art. 76) 

Capital Movements and Payments 

Art.  35,  38  (7)(b)  (Art.  62, 
73(7)(b)),  

V. 

Transport 

Transit Traffic 

Art. 34 (61.1) 
Protocol 4, Art:  
3 (a) and (b) 
11 (2), (3) and (5) 
19 (1) and (2) 
21 (1) and (2)(d) 

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Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on a Community Position to be adopted in the EC - Montenegro Interim Committee 
on its Rules of Procedure including the Terms of Reference 
and Structure of the EC-Montenegro sub-committees 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 300(2), 
second subparagraph thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

The  Interim  Agreement  on  trade  and  trade-related  matters  between  the  European 
Community, of the one part, and the Republic of Montenegro, of the other part2 (hereinafter 
referred to as "the Interim  Agreement"), that was signed on ………….., entered into force 
on …………... . 

Article  43  of  the  Interim  Agreement  provides  that  the  Interim  Committee  set  up  by  the 
Agreement shall supervise the application and the implementation of the Interim Agreement. 

Article 44, second paragraph, of the Interim Agreement provides that the Interim Committee 
shall adopt its own Rules of Procedure. 

Article 46 of the Interim Agreement provides that the Interim Committee may decide to set 
up sub-committees. 

The  designation,  composition,  Terms  of  Reference  and  Structure  of  the  sub-committees 
should be laid down in the Interim Committee's Rules of Procedure. 

The  Community  should  determine  the  position  to  be  taken  within  the  Interim  Committee 
with regard to the adoption of the Rules of Procedure, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Sole Article 

The  position  to  be  adopted  by  the  Community  within  the  Interim  Committee  referred  to  in 
Article 43  of  the  Interim  Agreement  on  trade  and  trade-related  matters  between  the  European 
Community, of the one part, and the Republic of Montenegro, of the other part, shall be based on 
the draft Decision of the Interim Committee attached to this Decision. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

2 

OJ L ….., …….2007, p. …. 

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ANNEX 

DECISION No 1/200.. of the EC – Montenegro Interim Committee 

of … 

on its Rules of Procedure including the Terms of Reference and 
Structure of the EC-Montenegro sub-committees 

THE EC – MONTENEGRO INTERIM COMMITTEE, 

Having regard to the Interim Agreement on trade and trade related matters between the European 
Community, of the one part, and the Republic of Montenegro, of the other part (hereinafter referred 
to as "the Interim Agreement") that was signed on ……….., and in particular Article 44 thereof, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 
Chairmanship 

The Interim Committee shall be chaired alternately, for periods of 12 months, by a representative of 
the Commission of the European Communities on behalf of the European Community, hereinafter 
referred  to  as  the  "Community",  and  a  representative  of  the  Government  of  the  Republic  of 
Montenegro.  However,  the  first  period  shall  begin  on  the  date  of  the  first  Interim  Committee 
meeting and end on 31 December of the same year.  

Article 2 
Meetings 

The Interim Committee shall meet regularly once a year in Brussels or Podgorica as agreed by both 
Parties. Special meetings of the Interim Committee may be convened by mutual agreement at the 
request of either Party. 

The meetings are convened by the Chairman. 

Unless otherwise agreed, the meetings of the Interim Committee shall not be public. 

Article 3 
Delegations 

Prior to each meeting, the Chairman shall be informed of the intended composition of the delegation 
of each Party. 

A  representative  of  the  European  Investment  Bank  (EIB)  may  attend  the  meetings  of  the  Interim 
Committee, as an observer, when matters which concern the EIB appear on the agenda. 

The  Interim  Committee  may  invite  non-members  to  attend  its  meetings  in  order  to  provide 
information on particular subjects. 

The  Member  States  of  the  Community  shall  be  informed  about  the  meetings  of  the  Interim 
Committee.  

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Article 4 
Secretariat 

An  official  of  the  Commission  of  the  European  Communities  and  an  official  of  the  Republic  of 
Montenegro shall act jointly as Secretaries of the Interim Committee. 

Article 5 
Correspondence 

All correspondence to and from the Chairman of the Interim Committee shall be forwarded to both 
Secretaries. The two Secretaries shall ensure that correspondence is circulated, where appropriate, 
to their respective representatives in the Interim Committee. 

Article 6 
Agenda of the meetings 

1. 

The Chairman and the Secretaries shall draw up a provisional agenda for each meeting not 
later than 15 working days before the beginning of the meeting. 

The provisional agenda shall include the items in respect of which a request for inclusion 
has been received by the Secretaries not later than 21 working 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 Interim Committee at the beginning of each meeting. 
Items other than those appearing on the provisional agenda may be included in the agenda 
if the two Parties so agree. 

2. 

The Chairman may, in agreement with the two Parties, shorten the time limits specified in 
paragraph 1 in order to take account of the requirements of a particular case. 

Article 7 
Minutes 

Draft  minutes  of  each  Interim  Committee  meeting  shall  be  drawn  up  by  the  Party  hosting  the 
meeting. They shall indicate the decisions and recommendations taken and the conclusions adopted. 
Within the two months following the meeting, the draft minutes shall be submitted to the Interim 
Committee for approval. When approved, the minutes shall be signed by the Chairman and the two 
Secretaries and one original copy shall be filed by each of the Parties. A copy of the minutes shall 
be forwarded to each of the addressees referred to in Article 5 of this Decision. 

The  Interim  Committee  shall  take  its  decisions  and  formulate  its  recommendations  by  mutual 
agreement between the Parties. 

Article 8 
Deliberations 

During 
recommendations by written procedure if both Parties so agree. 

inter-session  period, 

the  Interim  Committee  may 

the 

take  decisions  or  make 

The decisions and recommendations of the Interim Committee within the meaning of Article 45 of 
the  Interim  Agreement  shall  be  entitled  respectively  "Decision"  and  "Recommendation"  and 
followed by a serial number, by the date of their adoption and by a description of their subject. 

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The decisions and recommendations of the Interim Committee shall be signed by the Chairman and 
authenticated by the two Secretaries. 

The decisions taken by the Interim Committee shall be published by the Parties in their respective 
official  publications.  Each  Party  may  decide  on  the  publication  of  any  other  act  adopted  by  the 
Interim Committee. 

Article 9 
Languages 

The official languages of the Interim Committee shall be the official languages of the two Parties. 

Unless  otherwise  decided,  the  Interim  Committee  shall  base  its  deliberations  on  documentation 
prepared in these languages. 

Article 10 
Expenses 

The  Community  and  the  Republic  of  Montenegro  shall  each  defray  the  expenses  they  incur  by 
reason of their participation in the meetings of the Interim Committee and of sub-committees, both 
in  respect  of  staff,  travelling  and  subsistence  expenditure  and  of  postal  and  telecommunications 
costs. 

Expenditure  in  connection  with  interpretation,  translation  and  reproduction  of  documents  at 
meetings as well as any other expenditure relating to the material organisation of meetings shall be 
borne by the Party hosting the meetings. 

Article 11 
Sub-Committees 

The  Terms  of  Reference  and  the  Structure  of  the  Sub-Committees  set  up  to  assist  the  Interim 
Committee in carrying out its duties are set out in the Annex to this Decision.  

The  sub-committees  shall  be  composed  of  representatives  of  both  Parties.  They  shall  be  chaired 
alternately by the two Parties, according to Article 1.  

The sub-committees shall work under the authority of the Interim Committee, to which they shall 
report  after  each  one  of  their  meetings.  They  shall  not  take  decisions  but  may  make 
recommendations to the Interim Committee. 

The Interim Committee may decide to abolish any existing sub-committee, modify their Terms of 
Reference or establish new sub-committees to assist it in carrying out its duties. 

Done at, 

For the Interim Committee 
The Chairman 

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Terms of Reference and Structure of the EC-Montenegro Sub-Committees 

1. 

Composition and Chair 

ANNEX 

In accordance with Article 11, second paragraph of the Rules of Procedures, the sub-
committees  shall  be  composed  of  representatives  of  the  European  Commission  and 
representatives  of  the  Government  of  the  Republic  of  Montenegro  (hereinafter 
referred  to  as  "Montenegro").  They  shall  be  chaired  alternately  by  the  two  Parties, 
according  to  Article  1  of  the  Rules  of  Procedure.  The  Member  States  shall  be 
informed about the sub-committees meetings. 

2. 

Secretariat 

An  official  of  the  European  Commission  and  an  official  of  the  Government  of 
Montenegro shall act jointly as secretaries of each of the sub-committees. 

All  communications  concerning  the  sub-committees  shall  be  forwarded  to  the 
secretaries of the relevant sub-committees. 

3. 

Meetings 

The  sub-committees  shall  meet  regularly  once  a  year,  and  whenever  circumstances 
require, with the agreement of both Parties. Each meeting of a sub-committee shall 
be held at a time and place agreed by both Parties. 

If  both  Parties  agree,  the  sub-committees  may  invite  experts  to  their  meetings  to 
provide the specific information requested. 

4. 

Subject matters 

The  sub-committees  shall  discuss  issues  according  to  the  multidisciplinary  sub-
committee  structure  below.  Implementation  of  the  Interim  Agreement  and  the 
European  Partnership,  preparation  for  implementation  of  the  Stabilisation  and 
Association  Agreement,  and  progress  regarding  the  approximation,  implementation 
and  enforcement  of  legislation  shall  be  assessed  in  all  relevant  fields.  The  sub-
committees shall examine any problems that may arise in their relevant sectors and 
shall suggest possible steps to be taken. 

The sub-committees shall also serve as fora for the further clarification of the acquis 
communautaire, and shall review progress made by Montenegro in conforming to the 
acquis in line with commitments made in the Interim Agreement. 

5. 

Minutes 

Draft  minutes  of  each  sub-committee  meeting  shall  be  established  within  the  two 
months  following  the  meeting.  Once  agreed by  both  Parties,  a  copy  of  the  minutes 
shall  be  forwarded  by  the  secretaries  of  the  sub-committee  to  the  secretaries  of  the 
Interim Committee. 

6. 

7. 

Publicity 

Unless otherwise decided, the meetings of the sub-committees shall not be public. 

Sub-committees Structure 

1) 

Sub-committee  on  Trade,  Industry,  Customs,  Taxation  and  Cooperation  with 
other candidate countries (IA, Art. 3, 4-8, 19-33, 42, 53), 

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2) 

3) 

4) 

5) 

Sub-committee on Agriculture and Fisheries (Art. 9, 11(2)(3), 10, 13, 12(2), 14, 
15, 18), 

Sub-committee on Internal Market and Competition (IA, Art. 36, 37, 38 with 
Protocol 5, 39, 40, 41), 

Sub-committee  on  Economic  and  Financial  Issues  and  Statistics  (IA,  Art.  35, 
38 (7)(b)), 

Sub-committee on Transport (IA Art. 34, Protocol 4 Art. 3 (a) and (b), 11 (2), 3) 
and (5), 19 (1) and (2), 21 (1) and (2)(d) 

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