Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Establishment of an EU delegation to the UN in Geneva
Date: 2010-05-26
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European Union, UNO, diplomatic representation

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 26.5.2010 
COM(2010) 287 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

ESTABLISHMENT OF AN EU DELEGATION TO THE UN IN GENEVA 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

ESTABLISHMENT OF AN EU DELEGATION TO THE UN IN GENEVA 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Since 1 December 2009, the day of entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, the Commission’s 
Delegations have become EU Delegations. They will be part of the European External Action 
Service  (EEAS)  under  the  authority  of  the  High  Representative  of  the  Union  for  Foreign 
Affairs  and  Security  Policy  and  Vice  President  of  the  Commission  (HR/VP),  Catherine 
Ashton. 

In  October  2009  the  European  Council  adopted  a  Presidency  report  on  the  EEAS  (Doc. 
14930/09) which underlined i.a. the need to adapt urgently those EU Delegations in which the 
needs, in terms of coordination and efficiency of the external action, are of vital importance 
for  political  as  well  as  operational  reasons.  This  applies  in  particular  to  the  five  EU 
Delegations to International Organisations, the Delegation in Geneva being one of them. 

The question of EU Delegations is also addressed in the HR’s proposal of 25 March 2010 for 
a  Council  Decision  establishing  the  organisation  and  functioning  of  the  EEAS  (Doc. 
8029/10). On 26 April the Council (General Affairs) has reached a political orientation on the 
essential elements of the future Decision. Negotiations will continue, including in the context 
of the proposals of the Commission on the Staff Regulation and on the Financial Regulation. 

In this context, it should be noted that in view of the establishment of the EEAS - whose staff 
will be composed of personnel from the Commission, the General Secretariat of the Council 
and  Member  States’  diplomatic  services  -  the  Commission  has  opened  the  2010  selection 
procedure for Heads of Delegations to candidates from all three sources of personnel.  

It is intended also that the Liaison Office of General Secretariat of the Council in Geneva will 
be merged with the EU Delegation once the Council has taken a decision on the EEAS. 

Against  this  background  the  present  Communication  addresses  the  issue  of  splitting  the  EU 
Delegation in Geneva in order to enable the EU to take on the new responsibilities in the UN 
framework.  The  splitting  itself  will  be  done  within  existing  resources  under  the  current 
conditions, without prejudice to further reinforcement, upon the establishment of the EEAS, 
to allow the Delegation to the UN to assume its increased responsibilities. 

2. 

RATIONALE FOR CREATING A SECOND EU DELEGATION IN GENEVA 

1. A wide range of tasks 

The  Delegation’s  current  mandate  covers  the  diplomatic  work  related  to  the  World  Trade 
Organisation  on  one  side  and  the  18  UN  organisations  and  related  bodies  and  other 

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specialised agencies1 based in Geneva on the other. The Delegation has two policy sections, 
one for the WTO and related economic and trade matters, the other for UN affairs, as well as 
a common section for administration matters. 

The  Delegation's  responsibilities  vis-à-vis  WTO  negotiations  are  substantial,  given  the 
Union’s  exclusive  competence  for  external  trade,  its  membership  of  the  WTO,  the 
Commission's  role  as  the  sole  negotiator  for  the  EU  and  not  least  the  EU's  weight  as  the 
world’s  largest  trading  bloc.  Therefore,  ensuring  a  continued  adequate  standing  for  our 
representation is unquestionably a top priority for the EU.  

The  role  of  the  EU  in  the  UN  framework,  and  the  contribution  the  EU  is  making  to  UN 
policies and programmes are also considerable, and the Delegation's contribution to the work 
of  many  UN  bodies  has  continued  to  grow.  The  main  objective  of  the  Delegation  in  this 
respect is to help strengthening co-operation between the EU and the UN system, ensuring EU 
policies  and  competences  are  reflected  in  the  UN,  and  improving  coherence  at  the 
international  level.  The  Delegation  increasingly  has  to  participate  in  the  full  range  of  UN 
activities  in  Geneva,  and  providing  full  and  rapid  reporting  and  assistance  to  Brussels, 
especially in the field of human rights, humanitarian aid, asylum and migration, health, labour 
and  intellectual  property,  disarmament  and  covering  the  increasing  number  of  regular  and 
special sessions. 

Cooperation  with  EU  Member  States  in  Geneva  is  a  crucial  aspect  of  the  work  of  the 
Delegation, and one to which considerable efforts are devoted. Moreover, the Delegation has 
the  task  of  promoting  the  visibility  and  understanding  of  the  role  and  policies  of  the  EU 
through its contacts, information activities and networking with other diplomatic missions and 
Geneva-based international organisations, bodies and agencies. 

In  addition,  Geneva  receives  a  high  number  of  missions  from  Brussels,  including  many 
Commissioners.  The  Head/Deputy  Head  of  Delegation  must  therefore  organise,  support, 
accompany as necessary, and assist in reporting on incoming missions from the Commission 
or, if requested, from other EU institutions. 

One of the main challenges for the Delegation has always been for the Head and Deputy Head 
of  Delegation  to  find  the  right  balance  between  the  WTO  and  UN  activities  given  that  the 
WTO represents an almost full time job for each position but where UN work is increasingly 
full time. Already in 1994, the Inspection service of the Commission recommended creating 
two distinct Deputy Head of Delegation positions, one covering the WTO and the other the 
UN. The most recent inspection in 2008 also pointed to the growing amount of UN work and 
the  corresponding  need  to  have  a  separate  UN  ambassador.  There  are  now  as  many 
coordination meetings on UN matters as there are on WTO matters, for example. It also noted 
EU  Member  States  dissatisfaction  with  the  low  status  and  presence  of  the  EU  in  the  UN 
context. 

2. New challenges 

With the Lisbon Treaty in force, the Delegation in Geneva will have to take over the tasks of a 
local Presidency in terms of local coordination and representation of the Union. This is not yet 
the case as the Delegation is not sufficiently staffed do so. In the meantime the Delegation, 

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HRC,  UNCTAD,  UNHCR,  ITC,  ECE,  ILO,  WHO,  WIPO,  ITU,  WSIS,  UPU,  WMO,  IOM,  CoD, 
BTWC, CCW, APMBT, UNGA 1st Committee 

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the  Spanish  Embassy  and  other  Member  States’  Embassies  have  worked  out  pragmatic 
working  arrangements.  The  same  applies  to  the  other  EU  Delegations  to  international 
organisations. 

In the future, there will be a much heavier workload for the Head of Delegation to coordinate 
the  EU  position  in  different  UN  fora.  This  includes  not  least  the  need  for  the  physical 
presence  of  the  Head  of  Delegation  in  the  different  EU  coordination  meetings  at  Head  of 
Delegation level. At the same time, the “UN part” of the Delegation will need to gear up to its 
new  role  of  replacing  the  rotating  presidency  in  terms  of  representing  the  EU  in  the  UN, 
assuring  internal  coordination,  and  moving  from  analysis  and  reporting  to  a  more  proactive 
role of also carrying out political action. This evolution relates more to the work in the UN 
and  the  other  agencies  than  for  the  WTO  where  the  Delegation  has  a  long  established  and 
even more substantive role, as described above.  

The WTO process is very much Ambassador-driven, with negotiations sometimes only taking 
place  among  a  limited  number  of  Heads  of  Mission  present  in  Geneva,  including  the  EU’s 
Head of Delegation, but not Member States. In other less restricted WTO meetings, the EU 
Head of Delegation or the EU Deputy Head speak on behalf of the EU. Due to the Union’s 
exclusive competence, it is important that the EU's WTO Ambassador remains of the highest 
level  and  equivalent  to  his/her  counterparts  as  he/she  would  have  to  maintain  good  and 
effective contacts with third countries accredited to the WTO, and the WTO Director General, 
and effectively coordinate with EU Member States on a daily basis. 

The EU WTO Ambassador must also continue to ensure the Delegation's participation, where 
mandated, in all WTO negotiations and meetings and represent the EU at official ceremonies 
and at diplomatic functions in Geneva linked to this function. This includes his/her presence 
in Senior Official Meetings, active involvement in Dispute Settlement cases and even acting 
as  a  negotiator  in  the  many  instances  when  representation  from  Brussels  on  the  appropriate 
level is not always possible.  

It  should  be  noted  that  due  to  the  substantial  work  in  both  WTO  and  the  UN,  other  global 
players  as  the  US,  China,  Canada,  India,  Australia  and  Brazil  also  tend  to  have  two 
ambassadors and most often two separate missions, one for WTO and one for UN issues.  

In conclusion, it is clear that one Head of Delegation cannot and will be even less able in the 
future  to  carry  all  the  new  responsibilities  created  by  the  expansion  of  UN  work  and  the 
Lisbon  Treaty  provisions,  and  that  due  to  the  very  different  nature  of  tasks  –  WTO  on  one 
side, UN et al. on the other – the EU Delegation in Geneva should be turned into two separate 
Delegations,  with  two  Ambassadors  devoted  respectively  to  the  UN  and  to  the  WTO.  The 
division  into  two  Delegations  will  have  to  be  implemented  within  existing  means  and 
capabilities.  The  two  Delegations  should  share  the  same  premises  and  the  administration 
section, in order to use synergies in the most effective fashion. The final internal organisation 
of these two missions should be spelled out once the Liaison Office of the Council Secretariat 
has been merged with the EU Delegation. 

3. 

HUMAN AND BUDGETARY RESOURCES 

The  proposal  is  to  remain  at  a  constant  number  of  posts.  The  post  of  the  second  Head  of 
Delegation  will  be  created  using  the  existing  post  of  Deputy  Head  of  Delegation,  the 

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publication of which, in the 2010 rotation, will be cancelled. This post will be upgraded and 
republished at a higher level. 

It is the intention that, when budgetary resources permit, posts of deputy Head of Delegation 
will be created in both Delegations. This may be possible in the framework of the creation of 
the  EEAS  and  the  merging  of  the  EU  Delegation  and  the  Council  Liaison  Office.  In  the 
meantime, the staff numbers in the EU Delegation will remain constant. 

This, together with the fact that the existing Administration Section will remain common to 
both Delegations, will limit any extra costs to the minimum associated with the existence of a 
second Head of Delegation, to be covered by the existing resources.  

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SIMPLIFIED FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

1 

Title of draft decision: 

Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament: 
ESTABLISHMENT OF AN EU DELEGATION TO THE UN IN GENEVA 

2 

Policy area(s) and ABB activity(ies) concerned: 

Policy Areas: External Relations, Trade, Development, Enlargement  

Activity: External Service – Administrative expenditure of the delegations 

3 

4 

Legal basis: 

(cid:59) Administrative autonomy  (cid:133) Other ( specify):____________________ 

Description and grounds: 

It is proposed to split the current Delegation into two separate entities, one dealing with 
WTO affairs and the other one with UN affairs. This is necessary following the increased 
workload  of  the  Delegation  following  the  entry  into  force  of  the  Lisbon  Treaty  and  in 
particular due to the necessity to have the European Union represented at both the WTO 
and  the  UN  at  an  appropriate  level.  It  is  no  longer  possible  for  this  task  to  be 
accomplished by one single Head of Delegation. 

The current post of deputy Head of Delegation will therefore be upgraded from AD13 to 
AD 14/15. 

Apart from this change there will be no additional resources required as both delegations 
will share the same premises and administrative sections. The post of secretary to the new 
Head of Delegation will be covered by redeployment of existing resources. 

5 

Duration and estimated financial impact: 

5.1 

Period of application: 

(cid:133) Decision with a limited duration 

(cid:133) 
(cid:133) 

Decision in force from [YYYY] to [YYYY] 
Financial impact from [YYYY] to [YYYY] 

(cid:59) Decision with an indefinite duration in force from 2010 

5.2 

Estimated budgetary impact: 

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The draft decision entails: 

(cid:133) 

savings 

additional costs (if so, specify the heading(s) of the multiannual financial 

(cid:59) 
framework concerned):  

The additional costs, which are negligible, will be funded from the existing 
resources of the External Service under Heading 5.  

5.3 

5.4 

Third-party contributions to the financing of the draft decision: NONE 

Explanation of figures: 

The additional costs arising, on the basis of budget 2010 figures concern: 

The  marginal  salary  cost  between  an  AD  13  and  an  AD  15  –  estimated  at  €5,000  per 
month  

The  marginal  costs  of  an  official  residence  compared  to  standard  housing:  €29,200  per 
annum 

Additional representation costs: €20,000 per annum 

The purchase of an official car: €30,000  in 2010 and annual running costs of €2,400 per 
year.  

These  costs  are  calculated  for  6  months  in  2010  and  12  months  2011  et  seq.  The  car 
would be replaced in year 4. 

The purchase of furniture for the residence in 2010: €43.000 

6 

Compatibility with the current multiannual financial framework: 

(cid:59) 
(cid:133) 

(cid:133) 

The proposal is compatible with existing financial programming. 
The  proposal  will  entail  reprogramming  of  the  relevant  heading  in  the 
multiannual financial framework. 
The  proposal  requires  use  of  the  flexibility  instrument  or  revision  of  the 
multiannual financial framework2. 

7 

Impact of savings or additional costs on the allocation of resources: 

(cid:133)  Resources  to  be  obtained  by  means  of  internal  redeployment  within 

departments 

(cid:59)  Resources already allocated to the department(s) concerned  
(cid:133)  Resources to be requested during the next APS/PDB procedure 

2 

See points 19 and 24 of the Interinstitutional Agreement.  

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The  human  and  administrative  resources  required  will  be  covered  by  the 
allocation  which  may  be  granted  to  the  managing  DG  under  the  annual 
allocation procedure in the light of existing budgetary constraints. 

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ANNEX: 

ESTIMATED FINANCIAL IMPACT (savings or additional costs) FOR 

APPROPRIATIONS OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE NATURE OR FOR HUMAN RESOURCES. 

FTE=Full-Time Equivalent 

XX is the policy area or title concerned 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places)  

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

FTE in staff/year 

n 

n+1 

n+2 

n+3 

n+4 

n+5 

n+6 and 
later 

TOTAL 
/Annual 
cost 

Heading 5 

FT
E 

app.  FT
E 

app.  FT
E 

app.  FT
E 

app.  FT
E 

app.  FT
E 

app.  FT
E 

app. 

FT
E 

app. 

Establishment plan posts (officials and/or temporary staff) 

XX  01  01  01 
(Headquarters 
and 
Commission’s 
Representation 
Offices) 

XX  01  01  02 
(Delegations) 

External staff 

XX  01  02  01 

(total budget) 

 0 

0,30 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

 0 

0,390 

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XX  01  02  02 

(Delegations) 

Other 
lines (specify) 

budget 

Subtotal – 
Heading 5 

Outside Heading 5 

 0 

0,30 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

0 

0,60 

 0 

0,390 

Establishment plan posts (officials and/or temporary staff) 

XX 

05 
(Indirect research) 

01 

01 

10  01  05  01  (Direct 

research) 

External staff 

XX 01 04 yy 

- Headquarters 

- Delegations 

XX 

01 
05 
(Indirect research) 

02 

10  01  05  02  (Direct 

research) 

Other  budget  lines 

(specify) 

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Subtotal – Outside 
Heading 5 

TOTAL 

 0 

0,036 

0 

0,072 

0 

0,072 

0 

0,072 

0 

0,072 

0 

0,072 

0 

0,072 

 0 

0,468 

Other administrative appropriations XX is the policy area or title concerned 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

Year 

n 

n+1 

n+2 

n+3 

n+4 

n+5 

TOTAL 

n+6 and 
later 

Heading 5 

Headquarters 

XX 01 02 11 01 - Missions and entertainment expenses 

XX 01 02 11 02 - Meetings and conferences 

XX 01 02 11 03 - Committees  

XX 01 02 11 04 - Studies and consultations 

XX 01 02 11 05 - Information systems 

XX 01 02 11 06 - Further training 

XX 01 03 01 03 - Equipment and furniture 

XX 01 03 01 04 - Services and other operating expenditure 

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Other budget lines (specify where necessary) 

Delegations: 

XX  01  02  12  01  -  Missions,  conferences  and  entertainment 
expenses 

0,010 

0,020 

0,020 

0,020 

0,020 

0,020 

0,020 

 0,130 

XX 01 02 12 02 - Further training of officials 

XX  01  03  02  01  -  Purchase  and  rental  costs  and  related 
expenditure 

0,015 

0,029 

0,029 

0,029 

0,029 

0,029 

0,029 

 0,189 

XX 01 03 02 02 - Equipment, furniture, supplies and services 

0,074 

0,002 

0,002 

0,002 

0,032 

0,002 

0,002 

0,116 

Subtotal – Heading 5 

0,099 

0,051 

0,051 

0,051 

0,081 

0,051 

0,051 

 0,435 

Outside Heading 5 

XX  01  04  yy  –  Expenditure  on  technical  and  administrative 
assistance  (not  including  external  staff)  from  operational 
appropriations (former 'BA' lines) 

- Headquarters 

- Delegations 

XX  01  05  03  -  Other  management  expenditure  -  indirect 
research 

10 01 05 03 - Other management expenditure - direct research 

Other budget lines (specify where necessary) 

Subtotal – Outside Heading 5 

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GRAND TOTAL 

0,099 

0,051 

0,051 

0,051 

0,081 

0,051 

0,051 

 0,435 

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