, EVEN WHERE THE NATIONAL COURT IS REQUESTED TO APPLY THEM WITH REFERENCE TO RELATIONS BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS FOR PURPOSES OTHER THAN THAT OF DETERMINING WHETHER A COMMUNITY MEASURE IS VALID .
13 IN ADDITION , THE CORTE SUPREMA DI CASSAZIONE ASKS FROM WHAT DATE AND WITHIN WHAT LIMITS THAT SUBSTITUTION TOOK PLACE , REGARD BEING HAD TO THE FACT THAT THE COMMUNITY NEGOTIATED TARIFF CONCESSIONS AND MADE BINDINGS WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF GATT BEFORE 1 JULY 1968 , THE DATE OF THE INTRODUCTION OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF .
14 AS THE COURT HAD OCCASION TO STRESS IN THE JUDGMENTS CITED , IT IS IMPORTANT THAT THE PROVISIONS OF GATT SHOULD , LIKE THE PROVISIONS OF ALL OTHER AGREEMENTS BINDING THE COMMUNITY , RECEIVE UNIFORM APPLICATION THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY . ANY DIFFERENCE IN THE INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION OF PROVISIONS BINDING THE COMMUNITY AS REGARDS NON-MEMBER COUNTRIES WOULD NOT ONLY JEOPARDIZE THE UNITY OF THE COMMERCIAL POLICY , WHICH ACCORDING TO ARTICLE 113 OF THE TREATY MUST BE BASED ON UNIFORM PRINCIPLES , BUT ALSO CREATE DISTORTIONS IN TRADE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY , AS A RESULT OF DIFFERENCES IN THE MANNER IN WHICH THE AGREEMENTS IN FORCE BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND NON-MEMBER COUNTRIES WERE APPLIED IN THE VARIOUS MEMBER STATES .
15 IT FOLLOWS THAT THE JURISDICTION CONFERRED UPON THE COURT IN ORDER TO ENSURE THE UNIFORM INTERPRETATION OF COMMUNITY LAW MUST INCLUDE A DETERMINATION OF THE SCOPE AND EFFECT OF THE RULES OF GATT WITHIN THE COMMUNITY AND ALSO OF THE EFFECT OF THE TARIFF PROTOCOLS CONCLUDED IN THE FRAMEWORK OF GATT . IN THAT REGARD IT DOES NOT MATTER WHETHER THE NATIONAL COURT IS REQUIRED TO ASSESS THE VALIDITY OF COMMUNITY MEASURES OR THE COMPATIBILITY OF NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE PROVISIONS WITH THE COMMITMENTS BINDING THE COMMUNITY .
16 BECAUSE BOTH THE FACTS RELATING TO THESE CASES AND THE MEASURES ADOPTED BY THE COMMUNITY EVIDENCING ITS PARTICIPATION IN THE SYSTEM OF GATT WERE SPREAD OVER SOME TIME , SPECIAL PROBLEMS ARISE IN RELATION TO THE APPLICATION RATIONE TEMPORIS OF THE PRINCIPLES ESTABLISHED ABOVE .
17 IN THAT CONNEXION IT SHOULD BE POINTED OUT FIRST , AS THE COURT STATED IN ITS JUDGMENT OF 12 DECEMBER 1972 IN THE INTERNATIONAL FRUIT CASE , CITED ABOVE , THAT THE SUBSTITUTION OF THE COMMUNITY FOR THE MEMBER STATES IN RELATION TO COMMITMENTS UNDER GATT TOOK PLACE ON 1 JULY 1968 , FOLLOWING THE INTRODUCTION OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF . IT WAS AT THAT TIME THAT THE COMMUNITY , IN ADVANCE OF THE TIME FIXED FOR THE END OF THE TRANSITIONAL PERIOD , ASSUMED ITS FULL POWERS IN RELATION TO THE SPHERE COVERED BY GATT .
18 ON THE OTHER HAND , IN RELATION TO THE MATTERS GOVERNED BY THE TARIFF PROTOCOLS , INCLUDING THE CONCESSIONS AND BINDINGS AGREED IN THE FRAMEWORK OF SCHEDULE XL ( EEC ) WHICH FORMS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THOSE PROTOCOLS , THE EFFECT OF THE CONCLUSION OF THOSE AGREEMENTS WAS , BY VIRTUE OF ARTICLE 228 OF THE