Case T-279/19: Judgment of the General Court of 29 September 2021 — Front Polisario v Council (External relations — International agreements — Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement EC-Morocco — Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters on the amendment of Protocols 1 and 4 to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement — Decision approving the conclusion of the agreement — Action for annulment — Admissibility — Capacity to be a party to legal proceedings — Direct concern — Individual concern — Territorial scope — Jurisdiction — Interpretation of international law adopted by the Court — Principle of self-determination — Principle of the relative effect of treaties — Possibility of relying thereon — Concept of consent — Implementation — Discretion — Limits — Maintaining the effects of the contested decision)
Date: 2021-09-29
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: Mediterranean region (EU), Morocco, Union for the Mediterranean, Western Sahara, association agreement (EU), human rights, protocol to an agreement, ratification of an agreement, revision of an agreement, self-determination








C_2021490EN.01003002.xml










6.12.2021   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 490/30






Judgment of the General Court of 29 September 2021 — Front Polisario v Council
(Case T-279/19) (1)

(External relations - International agreements - Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement EC-Morocco - Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters on the amendment of Protocols 1 and 4 to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement - Decision approving the conclusion of the agreement - Action for annulment - Admissibility - Capacity to be a party to legal proceedings - Direct concern - Individual concern - Territorial scope - Jurisdiction - Interpretation of international law adopted by the Court - Principle of self-determination - Principle of the relative effect of treaties - Possibility of relying thereon - Concept of consent - Implementation - Discretion - Limits - Maintaining the effects of the contested decision)
(2021/C 490/32)
Language of the case: French

Parties


Applicant: Front populaire pour la libération de la Saguia el-Hamra et du Rio de oro (Front Polisario) (represented by: G. Devers, lawyer)

Defendant: Council of the European Union (represented by: P. Plaza García and V. Piessevaux, acting as Agents)

Interveners in support of the defendant: French Republic (represented by: A-L. Desjonquères, C. Mosser, J.-L. Carré and T. Stehelin, acting as Agents), European Commission (represented by: F. Castillo de la Torre, F. Clotuche-Duvieusart, A. Bouquet and B. Eggers, acting as Agents), Confédération marocaine de l’agriculture et du développement rural (Comader) (Rabat, Morocco) (represented by: G. Forwood, N. Colin and A. Hublet, lawyers)

Re:

Application under Article 263 TFEU for annulment of Council Decision (EU) 2019/217 of 28 January 2019 on the conclusion of the agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco on the amendment of Protocols 1 and 4 to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Kingdom of Morocco, of the other part (OJ 2019 L 34, p. 1).

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Annuls Council Decision (EU) 2019/217 of 28 January 2019 on the conclusion of the agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco on the amendment of Protocols 1 and 4 to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Kingdom of Morocco, of the other part;










2.


Maintains the effects of Decision 2019/217 during a period not exceeding the period set out in the first paragraph of Article 56 of the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union or, if an appeal is lodged within that period, until the Court of Justice delivers judgment on that appeal;










3.


Orders the Council of the European Union to bear its own costs and to pay the costs incurred by the Front populaire pour la libération de la Saguia el-Hamra et du Rio de Oro (Front Polisario);










4.


Orders the French Republic, the European Commission and the Confédération morocaine de l’agriculture et du développement rural (Comader) to bear their own costs.






(1)  OJ C 220, 1.7.2019.