Proposal for a Council Decision repealing Decision 2009/472/EC of 6 April 2009 and concerning the follow-up to the consultation procedure with the Islamic Republic of Mauritania under Article 96 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement
Date: 2009-12-07
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: ACP countries, Mauritania, cooperation agreement (EU), coup d'état, democracy, development aid, financial instrument, political cooperation, rule of law

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 7.12.2009 
COM(2009)670 final 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

repealing Decision 2009/472/EC of 6 April 2009 and concerning the follow-up to the 
consultation procedure with the Islamic Republic of Mauritania under Article 96 of the 
ACP-EC Partnership Agreement 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

Considering the  coup which  occurred  in Mauritania on 6 August 2008  a particularly serious 
and manifest violation of the essential elements listed in Article 9 of the ACP-EC Partnership 
Agreement, the European Union decided, on 15 September 2008, to open consultations with 
the Islamic Republic of Mauritania under Article 96 of the Agreement. 

A meeting was held for the purposes of these consultations in Paris on 20 October 2008. At 
this  meeting  and  in  the  months  that  followed,  the  European  Union  saw  no  satisfactory 
proposals  from  the  Mauritanian  side  and  decided  to  conclude  the  consultation  procedures 
while remaining committed, alongside the international Community, to finding a solution to 
the crisis. 

In the Council Decision of 6 April 2009 concerning the conclusion of consultations with the 
Islamic Republic of Mauritania under Article 96 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement1, the 
European  Union  set  out  a  road  map  for  the  gradual  resumption  of  cooperation  (appropriate 
measures) on the basis of the signature and implementation of a consensual solution to end the 
crisis, including transparent, representative and credible presidential elections. 

This  consensual  solution  for  a  return  to  constitutional  rule  took  shape  with  the  signing,  on 
4 June 2009, of the Dakar Agreement between the Mauritanian political forces involved in the 
conflict. In accordance with the appropriate measures adopted, this triggered the first phase in 
the resumption of cooperation. A second phase in the resumption of cooperation was agreed 
following the implementation of most of the steps laid down by the Dakar Agreement and the 
holding  of  presidential  elections  on  18 July 2009.  As  scheduled  by  the  above  Decision,  the 
Presidency  of  the  European  Union  and  the  Commission  sent  a  joint  follow-up  mission  to 
Mauritania  from  5  to  7  October  2009  in  order to report on the situation for the purposes of 
assessing  the  scope  for  a  total  resumption  of  cooperation  and  the  follow-up  to  the  Council 
Decision. 

The  mission  findings  are  consistent  with  the  opinion  of  the  international  community  and 
indicate  that  Mauritania  has  carried  out  a  complete  return  to  constitutional  order  permitting 
the total resumption of cooperation as stipulated by the Decision of 6 April. 

the  presidential  elections.  This  chapter  was  one  of 

In line with the evaluation made by the International Contact Group on Mauritania, there is, 
however, a need for follow-up on the chapter of the Dakar Agreement concerning an inclusive 
national  dialogue  after 
the 
confidence-building  measures  approved  by  the  parties  that  permitted  the  conclusion  of  the 
Dakar Agreement. This dialogue, which is aimed at strengthening the country's stability, has 
yet to start and could require encouragement from the international community. Indeed, some 
of  the  issues  mentioned  as  root  causes  of  the  coup  of  6 August 2008  clearly  have  not  been 
addressed,  in  particular  the  rebalancing  of  power,  the  institutional  reforms,  the  role  of  the 
armed forces and the strengthening of democracy and good governance. 

In  conclusion,  any  follow-up  action  to  the  Council  Decision  of  6 April 2009  should  include 
the  launching  of  an  in-depth  EU-Mauritania  political  dialogue  aimed  at  strengthening  the 
stability  of  the  country,  promoting  progress  in  good  governance  and  supporting  the 
implementation  of  an  inclusive  national  dialogue  in  accordance  with  Chapter  4.VII  of  the 

1 

Decision 2009/472/EC, published in OJ L 156 of 19 June 2009. 

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Dakar Agreement. This enhanced political dialogue will be held in accordance with Article 8 
of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement. 

In the light of the above, the Commission proposes that the Council repeal Council Decision 
2009/472/EC of 6 April 2009 and adopt the attached decision under Article 96 of the ACP-EC 
Partnership Agreement in its place. 

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Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

repealing Decision 2009/472/EC of 6 April 2009 and concerning the follow-up to the 
consultation procedure with the Islamic Republic of Mauritania under Article 96 of the 
ACP-EC Partnership Agreement 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the 
European Union, 

Having regard to the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000, as 
revised in Luxembourg on 25 June 2005 (hereinafter referred to as the ACP-EC Agreement), 
and in particular Article 96 thereof, 

Having regard to the Internal Agreement between the representatives of the governments of 
the Member States, meeting within the Council, on measures to be taken and procedures to be 
followed  for  the  implementation  of  the  ACP-EC  Partnership  Agreement2,  and  in  particular 
Article 3 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

The  Islamic  Republic  of  Mauritania  has  implemented  the  consensual  solution  for 
ending  the  crisis  as  defined  by  the  appropriate  measures  put  in  place  by  Decision 
2009/472/EC of 6 April 2009 concerning the conclusion of the consultation procedure 
with the Islamic Republic of Mauritania under Article 96 of the ACP-EC Agreement3. 

(2) 

The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has returned to constitutional rule. 

(3) 

(4) 

In  order  to  ensure  the  stability  of  the  country  and  to  prevent  new  violations  of  the 
essential elements referred to in Article 9 of the ACP-EC Agreement, it is necessary to 
promote an inclusive national dialogue and therefore to restart cooperation. 

Decision  2009/472/EC  should  therefore  be  repealed,  and  political  dialogue  with  the 
Islamic  Republic  of  Mauritania  should  be  resumed  with  a  view  to  reinforcing 
democracy,  preventing  unconstitutional  changes  of  government,  reforming  the 
institutions and the role of the armed forces, good political and economic governance, 
reinforcing the rule of law and human rights and restoring the balance of institutions 
and power, 

2 
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OJ L 317, 15.12.2000, p. 376. 
OJ L 156, 19.6.2009, p. 26. 

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HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 

Council  Decision  2009/472/EC  of  6  April  2009  concerning  the  conclusion  of  consultations 
with  the  Islamic  Republic  of  Mauritania  under  Article  96  of  the  ACP-EC  Partnership 
Agreement is hereby repealed. 

Political  dialogue  with  the  Islamic  Republic  of  Mauritania  under  Article 8  of  the  ACP-EC 
Agreement will be conducted in the form set out in the letter annexed to this Decision. 

Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption. 

Article 3 

It shall be valid for 24 months from the date of its adoption by the Council. If necessary, it 
may be re-examined on the basis of European Union follow-up missions. 

Article 4 

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union. 

Done at Brussels, […] 

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX 

Draft letter 

Sir, 

It is with great satisfaction that we note Mauritania's return to constitutional rule following the 
implementation of most of the measures envisaged by the Dakar Agreement, culminating in 
your  appointment  as  Head  of  State.  It  is  therefore  our  pleasure  to  confirm  to  you  the  full 
resumption of cooperation between the EU and the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. 

We note that, in accordance with Article 4-VII of the Dakar Agreement, the different political 
forces which signed the Agreement have committed themselves to continuing and stepping up 
an inclusive national dialogue in order to consolidate national reconciliation and democracy. 
As  stated  by  the  members  of  the  International  Contact  Group  at  their  last  meeting  on 
10 September 2009,  it  is  desirable  that  this  dialogue  should  take  place.  It  is  already 
encouraging to see the readiness of the various parties to take part in the dialogue. It seems 
clear that certain underlying issues cited among the root causes of the coup of 6 August 2008 
have yet to be resolved. The topics for dialogue referred to in the Dakar Agreement include 
reinforcing  democracy,  preventing  unconstitutional  changes  of  government,  reforming  the 
institutions  and  the  role  of  the  armed  forces,  good  political  and  economic  governance, 
reinforcing  the  rule  of  law  and  human  rights  and  restoring  the  balance  of  institutions  and 
power.  The  security  threats  that  have  emerged  in  Mauritania  suggest  that  fighting  terrorism 
and organised crime could also be a subject for dialogue. 

The  European  Union  attaches  great  importance  to  all  issues  relating  to  the  stability  of  your 
country,  including  those  mentioned  above.  As  these  are  subjects  of  common  interest  and 
given  the  scale  of  Community  cooperation  in  Mauritania  in  the  area  of  governance,  we 
propose  that  the  political  dialogue  between  Mauritania  and  the  Union,  as  provided  for  in 
Article  8  of  the  Cotonou  Agreement,  be  strengthened  and  put  on  a  regular  and  structured 
footing. The practical arrangements and terms of reference for this dialogue will have to be 
established  by  mutual  agreement  between  your  Government  and  the  heads  of  the  European 
Union's diplomatic missions to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. 

One  of  the  objectives  of  this  dialogue  will  be  to  promote  the  inclusive  national  dialogue 
mentioned  above.  We  believe  that  the  preconditions  and  difficulties  that  have  beset  the 
launching of this dialogue could be resolved if the various Mauritanian parties were to focus 
their discussions on the future and set aside demands and disputes relating to the recent past. 

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To conclude, the Union will support Mauritania's efforts to overcome the socio-economic and 
political difficulties that it is experiencing owing to the long-running political crisis connected 
with the coup of August 2008, the global economic crisis and the new security and terrorist 
threats. 

We have the honour to be, Sir, yours faithfully, 

Done at Brussels, 

For the European Commission 

For the Council of the European Union 

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