CELEX: 51998PC0074
Language: en
Date: 1998-02-10
Title: Proposal for a Council Decision on the Community position concerning the Rules of Procedure of the Cooperation Council established by the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                         Brussels, 10.02.1998
                                         COM(1998) 74 final
                          Proposal for a
                     COUNCIL DECISION
            ON THE COMMUNITY POSITION
                       CONCERNING
THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE COOPERATION COUNCIL
    ESTABLISHED BY THE COOPERATION AGREEMENT
        BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
 AND THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
               (presented by the Commission)
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                          EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1. Article 33 of the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and the
   former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia foresees the establishment of a Cooperation
   Council composed of representatives of the Community, on the one hand, and of
   representatives of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, on the other hand.
   Its role consists in providing a forum for consultation between the Contracting
   Parties and it has the power, for the purpose of attaining the objectives set out in the
   Agreement, to take decisions in the cases provided for in the Agreement. It may also
   formulate any resolutions, recommendations or opinions which it considers desirable
   for the attainment of the common objectives and the smooth functioning of the
   Agreement.
2. According to Article 33, paragraph 3 of the Cooperation Agreement, the Cooperation
   Council shall establish its own rules of procedure. Article 3 (2) of the Council
   Decision 97/831 /EC of 27 November 1997 on the conclusion of the Cooperation
   Agreement provides that the position to be adopted by the Community in the
   Cooperation Council shall be determined by the Council, on a proposal from the
   Commission. In accordance with this provision, the annexed draft rules of procedure
   are proposed for adoption as Community position, by means of a decision by the
   Council.
3. The Cooperation Agreement with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
   follows to a large extent the model of the 1993 Cooperation Agreement with
   Slovenia. The Cooperation Council is, however, the only joint body provided for by
   that Agreement, whereas the Cooperation Agreement with Slovenia established a
   Cooperation Council and a Cooperation Committee. The Cooperation Council with
   the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia shall in general have the functions of
   Joint or Cooperation Committees established by other cooperation agreements
   concluded by the Community.
4. The draft proposal has been based on the rules of procedure for the Joint Committee
   with Albania, adjusted in the light of the above mentioned Council Decision, in
   particular with regard to the publication of the Cooperation Council's decisions . It
   also provides more detailed rules on working parties and on expenses.
5. The Council is requested to adopt the annexed Commission proposal on a
   Community position in relation to the rules of procedure of the Cooperation Council
   with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
                                              ol
 ---pagebreak---                        PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DECISION
                           ON A COMMUNITY POSITION
                                     CONCERNING
       THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE COOPERATION COUNCIL
             ESTABLISHED BY THE COOPERATION AGREEMENT
                     BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
          AND THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to the Council Decision 97/831/EC of 27 November 19971 on the
conclusion of the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and" the
former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and in particular Article 3 thereof,
Having regard to the Commission proposal2,
Whereas a Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and the former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has been signed on 29 April 1997,
Whereas Article 33 of the Cooperation Agreement establishes a Cooperation Council,
Whereas Article 33 of the said Agreement further provides that the Cooperation Council
shall adopt its own rules of procedure,
Whereas Article 36 of the said Agreement further provides that the Cooperation Council
may decide to set up working parties, the composition, duties and functioning of which
shall be determined in the rules of procedures,
Whereas the Community should therefore define its position to be adopted in the
Cooperation Council with regard to these Rules of Procedure,
HEREBY DECIDES AS FOLLOWS:
 The position to be adopted by the Community within the Cooperation Council
 established by virtue of Article 33 of the Cooperation Agreement between the European
 Community and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in relation to the rules of
 procedure of the said Cooperation Council shall be based on the draft rules of procedure
 annexed to the present decision. Minor modifications of the said draft rules of procedure
 may be accepted without further decision by the Council.
 Done at Brussels,
 'OJL348, 18.12.1997, p. 1
 2
   OJC79, 12.03.1997, p.l
 ---pagebreak---                        Decision n° 1 of the Cooperation Council
concerning the Rules of Procedure of the Cooperation Council established by the
            Cooperation Agreement between the European Community
                   and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
THE COOPERATION COUNCIL,
Having regard to the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community of
the one part, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, of the other part, and
in particular Articles 33 to 36 thereof,
Whereas that Agreement entered into force on 1 January 1998.
HAS ADOPTED THE FOLLOWING RULES OF PROCEDURES:
                                          Article 1
                                     CHAIRMANSHIP
The office of Chairman of the Cooperation Council shall be held alternately for
periods of twelve months by a representative of the former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia and a representative of the European Community, hereinafter referred to
as the "Community". However, the first period shall begin on the date of the first
Cooperation Council and end on 31 December of the same year.
                                         MEETINGS
 1.      Each session of the Cooperation Council shall be held at a time and place
 agreed by both Parties in the Community and the former Yugoslav Republic of
 Macedonia alternately.
 2.      The Cooperation Council shall meet once a year. Additional meetings may be
 held if both Parties so agree, at the request of either Party.
 3.      Unless otherwise agreed the sessions of the Cooperation Council shall not be
 public.
                                                  ^
 ---pagebreak---                                           Article 3
                                     DELEGATIONS
Prior to each session, the Community and the former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia shall agree on the level of representation of the Cooperation Council. They
shall also inform each other of the intended composition of their respective
delegations.
                                         Article 4
                         SECRETARIAT, COMMUNICATIONS
An official of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and an official of the
Commission of the European Communities shall act jointly as Secretaries of the
Cooperation Council.
All communications to and from the Chairman shall be forwarded to these Secretaries.
                                          ArtkkJ.
                                         AGENDA
 1.     The Chairman and the Secretaries shall draw up the provisional agenda for
each session.
The provisional agenda shall consist of those items in respect of which a request for
inclusion has reached the Secretaries not less than 21 days before the beginning of the
session.
The only items which may appear on the provisional agenda shall be those in respect
of which the relevant documentation has been forwarded to the Secretaries referred to
in Article 4 not later than the date of dispatch of this agenda.
The agenda shall be adopted by the Cooperation Council at the beginning of each
 session. Where both Parties agree, items which do not appear on the provisional
agenda may be included.
 2.      The Chairman may, in agreement with the two parties, shorten the time limits
 laid down in Paragraph 1 to take account of the requirements of a particular case.
                                                     r
 ---pagebreak---                                          ArticieJ*
                                        MINUTES
Minutes shall be taken for each session and shall include the summing up of the
proceedings by the Chairman. Upon adoption by the Cooperation Council, the
minutes shall be signed by the Chairman and the Secretaries and one original copy
filed by each of the Parties.
                                         Article 7
                                  WORKING PARTIES
1.       The Cooperation Council may establish working parties on specific subjects to
assist it in carrying out its duties. They shall be composed of representatives of both
Parties.
2.       The working parties shall work under the authority of the Cooperation Council
which shall determine their objectives and the scope of their activities . They shall not
take decisions but can make recommandations to the Cooperation Council to which
they shall report after each one of their meetings.
3.       The Cooperation Council can at any time modify the terms of reference of the
working parties and terminate their existence.
                                         ArtidsJ*
                                      AMENDMENTS
The Cooperation Council may make such amendments to the Rules of Procedure as it
may find appropriate to facilitate the efficient performance of its tasks, without
prejudice to Articles 33-36 of the Cooperation Agreement.
 ---pagebreak---                                         Articje_2
                                         ACTS
Decisions adopted by the Cooperation Council within the meaning of Article 33 (1)
shall be signed by the Chairman and the Secretaries.
Decisions, Resolutions, Recommendations or Opinions of the Cooperation Council
formulated within the meaning of Article 33 (2) of the Cooperation Agreement shall
be followed by a serial number, by the place and date of their adoption and by a
description of their subject.
Decisions taken by the Cooperation Council shall be published by the Parties in their
respective official gazettes. The Cooperation Council may decide on the publication
of any other of its acts.
                                       Article 10
                                     LANGUAGES
The official languages of the Cooperation Council shall be the official languages of
the Parties.
The Cooperation Council shall normally base its deliberations on documentation
prepared in these languages.
                                       Article 11
                                      EXPENSES
The Community, on the one hand, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
 on the other, shall defray the expenses that they incur as a result of their participation
 in meetings of the Cooperation Council and of working parties in respect of staff,
 travelling and subsistence expenses and also of postal and telecommunications costs.
 Expenditure in connection with interpretation at meetings, translation and
 reproduction of documents shall be borne by the Community, with the exception of
 expenditure in connection with interpretation or translation into or from the official
 language of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, which shall be borne by the
 former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
 Other expenditure relating to the material organization of meetings shall be borne by
 the Party which hosts the meetings.
                                                  n-
 ---pagebreak---                           FINANCIAL STATEMENT
1.   TITLE OF OPERATION
     Rules of Procedure of the Cooperation Council established by the Cooperation
     Agreement between the European Community and the former Yugoslav Republic of
     Macedonia (FYROM): Establishment of a Cooperation Council and, where appropriate,
     of special working parties.
2.   BUDGET HEADING INVOLVED
     A-701 : Mission expenses
     (exA-130)
     A-7031 : Meetings of committees
     (exA-2510)
     In accordance with Article 3 of Council decision 97/831/EC mentioned below, the
     Council may decide that the Presidency of the Council shall represent the Community in
     the Cooperation Council. In that case, budget heading A-7031 will not be involved and
     relevant meeting costs will be chargeable to the Council budget.
3.   LEGAL BASIS
     Articles 33-36 of the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and
     FYROM. Council decision 97/831/EC of 27 November 1997 on the conclusion of that
     Agreement, and in particular Article 3 thereof.
4.   DESCRIPTION OF OPERATION
   4.1       General objective
             Implementation of the institutional provisions of the Cooperation Agreement
   4.2       Period covered and arrangements for renewal
             unlimited
5.   CLASSIFICATION OF EXPENDITURE OR REVENUE
   5.1       Compulsory/Non-compulsory expenditure
             Non-compulsory expenditure.
   5.2       Differentiated/Non-differentiated appropriations
             Non-differentiated appropriations.
   53         Type of revenue involved
              No revenues.
                                              t
 ---pagebreak--- 6.         TYPE OF EXPENDITURE OR REVENUE
           100% subsidy (missions by officials, organisation of conferences, interpretation,
           translation, reproduction of documents)
7.         FINANCIAL IMPACT
         7.1        Method of calculating total cost of operation (relation between individual
                    and total costs)
                    See section 10. No operational expenditure involved.
         7.2        Itemised breakdown of cost
                                            Commitment appropriations ECU million (at current prices)
     Breakdown           yearn      n+1      n+2       n+3       n+4        n+5          Total
                                                                            and
                                                                            subs, yrs
   Total
         13 Operational expenditure for studies, experts etc. included in Part B of the budget
                                                Commitment appropriations ECU million (at current prices)
                             yearn    n+1        n+2       n+3        n+4         n + 5 and     Total
                                                                                  subs, yrs
   - Studies
   - Meetings of experts
   - Conferences and
   congresses
   - Information and
   publications
   Total
              7.4   Schedule of commitment and payment appropriations
                                                                                      ECU million
                              yearn    n+1         n+2       n+3         n+4          n + 5 and      Total
                                                                                       subs, yrs
   Commitment
   appropriations
   Payment
   appropriations
             yearn
             n+1
             n+2
              n+3
              n+4
              n+5
         and subs, yrs
    Total
 ---pagebreak---  8      FRAUD PREVENTION MEASURES
       Checks by the responsible officials.
 9     ELEMENTS OF COST-EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS
          9.1   Specific and quantified objectives; target population
                The institutionalised dialogue between the European Community and FYROM
                will be an essential prerequisite for achieving the aims of the Cooperation
                Agreement, namely the promotion of trade and investment flows, economic and
                social development in the country and close cooperation across a wide number of
                policy fields.
                Targeted are economic operators and the general public in FYROM.
          9.2   Grounds for the operation
                Coordinated approach by the European Community to cooperation with
                FYROM. Approach is similar to that of Cooperation Agreements with other
                countries in the region (for example: Albania).
          93    Monitoring and evaluation of the operation
                Periodic stock-taking between the Commission and FYROM authorities.
 10     ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENDITURE (SECTION III, PART A OF THE BUDGET)
        Actual mobilization of the necessary administrative resources will depend on the
        Commission's annual decision on the allocation of resources, taking into account the
        number of staff and additional amounts authorized by the budgetary authority.
           10.1 Effect on the number of posts
Type of post            Staff to be assigned to        Source                        Duration
                        managing the operation
                        Permanent        Temporary     Existing       Additional
                        posts            posts         resources in   resources
                                                       the DG or
                                                       department
                                                       concerned
Officials or     A      0.25             0             0,25           0
temporary        B                       0
staff            C      0.25             0             0.25
Other resources         0                0             0              0
         Total          0,5              0             0,5            0
                                                   /o
 ---pagebreak---             10.2 Overall financial impact of existing human resources
                                                                                          ECU
                                            Amounts                     Method of calculation
 Officials                                  54.000          0.5 men/year x 108.000 = 54.000
 Temporary staff                            0
 Other resources (indicate budget heading)  0
                                     Total 1 54.0000      |
            103 Other administrative expenditure as a result of the operation
                                                                                          ECU
 Budget heading               Amounts                    Method of calculation
                                            Cooperation Council
           A-701              10.000        Involvement of 10 officials from the Commission (1 /year
         (ex A-130)                         alternated Skopje/Brussels)
    (mission expenses)                      Skopje: 10 officials x 1.000 = 10.000
                                            Brussels:
                                            Working Parties
                              9.000         3 working parties (2/year alternated Skopje/Brussels)
                                            Skopje: 3 officials x 3 working parties x 1.000 = 9.000
                      Total   19.000
                                             {Cooperation Council
                                m
          A-7031              P -
       (ex A-2510)                           {Working Parties
(meetingof Committees)
N.B. The necessary resources for missions by Commission officials will be obtained through
redeployment of existing resources. Travel costs for Council representatives participating in
meetings of the Cooperation Council and working parties are paid by the Council Secretariat
General. If the Presidency of the Council represents the Community in the Cooperation Council,
Commission budget heading A-7031 will not be involved and relevant meeting costs will be
chargeable to the Council budget.
                                                       L/
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                                                                    ISSN 0254-1475
                                                             COM(98) 74 final
                                             DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                11 02 06
                                    Catalogue number : CB-CO-98-080-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-78-31031-X
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