Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the conclusion of the International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015
Date: 2017-06-01
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: agreement (EU), commodity agreement, interim agreement (EU), olive, olive oil, ratification of an agreement

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 1.6.2017  COM(2017) 264 final 2017/0107 (NLE)   Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the conclusion of the International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

1. 
The International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 20051, which was due to expire 
on 31 December 2014, was extended until 31 December 2015. Article 47(3) thereof provides 
that the agreement remained in force until the entry into force of the new Agreement. 

On  19 November  2013,  the  Council  authorised  the  Commission  to  open  negotiations  on 
behalf of the Union in order to conclude a new international agreement on olive oil and table 
olives. 

During the United Nations Conference for the Negotiation of a Successor Agreement to the 
International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2005, held at the Palais des Nations 
in Geneva from 5 to 9 October 2015, the representatives of 24 Member States of the United 
Nations  Conference  on  Trade  and  Development  (UNCTAD)  and  two  intergovernmental 
organisations drew up the text of the new Agreement.  

The text of the Agreement, which was negotiated in consultation with the Working Party on 
Commodities (PROBA), duly reflects the negotiating directives issued by the Council.  
In accordance with Council Decision (EU) 2016/1892 of 10 October 20162, the International 
Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives,  2015  was  signed  on  behalf  of  the  Union  on  28 
November 2016 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, subject to its conclusion at 
a later date.  

The  new  Agreement  entered  into  force  provisionally  on  1  January  2017  in  accordance  with 
Article 31(2) thereof. 

2. 

PROPOSAL 

In the light of the above, the Commission proposes: 

that, in accordance with Articles 207(4) and 218(6) TFEU, the President of the Council shall 
designate the person empowered to proceed, on behalf of the European Union, to the deposit 
of  the  instrument  of  approval  provided  for  in  Article  28(4)  of  the  Agreement,  in  order  to 
express the consent of the European Union to be bound by the Agreement. 

It  has  also  been  provided  that,  in  accordance  with  Article  218(7)  TFEU,  the  Council 
empowers the Commission to draw up the positions to be adopted on behalf of the Union in 
the  Council  of  Members  created  by  the  new  agreement,  when  that  body  is  called  upon  to 
adopt  amendments  to  the  designations  and  definitions  of  oils,  olive  pomace  oils  and  table 
olives provided for in annexes B and C to the Agreement, in accordance with Article 19(2) of 
the Agreement.  

3. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS 

This proposal does not have budgetary implications. 

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OJ L 302, 19.11.2005, p. 47. 
Council Decision (EU) 2016/1892 of 10 October 2016 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, 
and  provisional  application  of  the  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives,  2015 
(OJ L 293, 28.10.2016, p. 2). 

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2017/0107 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the conclusion of the International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article  207(4)  in  conjunction  with  Article  218(6)  second  subparagraph,  point  (a)(v)  and 
Article 218(7) thereof,  

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Having regard to the consent of the European Parliament, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

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On 19 November 2013, the Council authorised the Commission to open negotiations 
on behalf of the Union in order to conclude a new international agreement on olive oil 
and table olives3. 

and  Development 

The  text  of  the  new  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives  was 
adopted on 9 October 2015 by the representatives of 24 Member States of the United 
Nations  Conference  on  Trade 
two 
intergovernmental  organisations  during  the  United  Nations  Conference  for  the 
Negotiation  of  a  Successor  Agreement  to  the  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil 
and Table Olives, 2005.  
In  accordance  with  Council  Decision  (EU)  2016/1892  of  10  October  20164,  the 
International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives (hereinafter referred to as ‘the 
Agreement’) was signed on behalf of the Union on 28 November 2016 at the United 
Nations Headquarters in New York, subject to its conclusion at a later date. 

(UNCTAD) 

and 

The Agreement entered into force provisionally on 1 January 2017 in accordance with 
Article 31(2) thereof. 

The Agreement establishes a decision-making body, called the ‘Council of Members’, 
which  exercises  all  powers  and  performs  all  the  functions  necessary  to  achieve  the 
objectives  of  the  Agreement.  The  Commission  should  be  authorised  to  represent  the 
Union in the Council of Members. 

In  accordance  with  Article 19(2)  of  the  Agreement,  the  Council  of  Members  may 
amend  the  designations  and  definitions  of  oils,  olive  pomace  oils  and  table  olives 
provided for in annexes B and C of the Agreement, and thus amend the Agreement.  

COM(2013) 646 final, 19.9.2013. 
Council Decision (EU) 2016/1892 of 10 October 2016 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, 
and  provisional  application  of  the  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives,  2015 
(OJ L 293, 28.10.2016, p. 2). 

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(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

In  order  to  facilitate  the  adoption  of  these  amendments  to  the  Agreement  by  the 
Council of Members, the Commission should be authorised to approve them on behalf 
of the Union.  

The  Commission  should  adopt  the  Union’s  positions  regarding  the  proposed 
amendments to the Agreement, ensuring that these positions are in the interests of the 
Union,  serve  the  Union’s  trade  policy  objectives,  and  are  not  contrary  to  EU  law  or 
international  law,  without  prejudice  to  the  Commission’s  right  to  adapt  the  Union’s 
rules by delegated act to the amendments to the Agreement adopted by the Council of 
Members, particularly as regards marketing standards in the olive-oil and table-olives 
sector,  referred  to  in  Article  75  of  Regulation  (EU)  No  1308/2013  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council5.  

In order to have the expertise of the Member States, and in order to ensure maximum 
consistency between the decisions of the Council of Members and the Union rules that 
will be adopted by means of a delegated act following the decisions of the Council of 
Members,  the  Commission  should  be  assisted  by  representatives  of  the  Member 
States, who should be informed from the moment it prepares the positions it plans to 
take in the name of the Union. Provision should be made that if a number of Member 
States  equivalent  to  a  blocking  minority  established  by  the  second  paragraph  of 
Article 238(3)(a)  of  the  Treaty  oppose  the  position  planned  by  the  Commission,  the 
Commission may not take that position.   

(10)  The agreement should be approved on behalf of the European Union,  

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 

Article 1 

The  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives,  2015,  is  hereby  approved  on 
behalf of the Union. 

The text of the agreement is annexed to this Decision. 

The President of the Council shall designate the person empowered to proceed, on behalf of 
the European Union, to the deposit of the instrument of approval provided for in Article 28(4) 
of the Agreement, in order to express the consent of the Union to be bound by the Agreement. 

Article 2 

The Commission shall represent the Union in the Council of Members established by Article 
3 of the Agreement. 

Article 3 

Where  the  Council  of  Members  created  by  the  Agreement  is  called  upon  to  adopt 
amendments  to  the  designations  and  definitions  of  oils,  olive  pomace  oils  and  table  olives 

Article 4 

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Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 
establishing  a  common  organisation  of  the  markets  in  agricultural  products  and  repealing  Council 
Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 (OJ L 
347, 20.12.2013, p. 671). 

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provided for in  annexes B and C of  the Agreement,  in  accordance with Article 19(2) of the 
Agreement, the Commission shall be empowered to draw up the positions to be adopted on 
behalf of the Union concerning the proposed amendments, under the following conditions: 

1) 

The Commission should ensure that the positions adopted: 

- 

- 

are in the interests of the Union; 

are  not  contrary  to  EU  law  or  international  law,  and  in  particular  are  not 
contrary  to  Regulation  (EU)  No  1308/2013,  without  prejudice  to  the 
Commission’s  right  to  adapt  the  Union’s  rules  by  delegated  act  to  the 
amendments  to  the  Agreement  adopted  by  the  Council  of  Members, 
particularly  as  regards  marketing  standards  in  the  olive-oil  and  table-olives 
sector, referred to in Article 75 of that Regulation. 

2) 

In  order  to  draw  up  the  Union’s  position,  the  Commission  shall  inform  the 
representatives of the Member States within an appropriate period of the position it 
plans to take on behalf of the Union within the Council of Members. 

If a number of Member States equivalent to a blocking minority established by the 
second paragraph of Article 238(3)(a) of the Treaty oppose the position planned by 
the  Commission,  the  Commission  may  not  take  that  position  in  the  Council  of 
Members. In this case, the Commission shall submit an appropriate proposal to the 
Council in accordance with Article 218(9) of the Treaty. 

Article 5 

This Decision shall enter into force on the seventh day following that of its publication in the 
Official Journal of the European Union. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 
The President 

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