Council Regulation (EEC) No 4153/88 of 19 December 1988 opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas for Chinese cabbage, iceberg lettuce, sweet peppers and peeled tomatoes originating in Israel (1988)

COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 4153/88  of 19 December 1988  opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas for Chinese cabbage, iceberg lettuce, sweet peppers and peeled tomatoes originating in Israel (1988)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 113 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas Articles 1 and 2 of the Fourth Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the State of Israel (1) provide for the opening of Community tariff quotas for imports into the Community of:
- 450 tonnes of Chinese cabbage falling within CN code ex 0704 90 90,
- 250 tonnes of iceberg lettuce falling within CN code ex 0705 11 10,
- 7 400 tonnes of sweet peppers falling within CN code 0709 60 10,
- 2 800 tonnes of peeled tomatoes falling within CN code No 2002 10 00,
originating in Israel;
Whereas, within the limits of those tariff quotas, customs duties are to be dismantled over the same periods and at the same rates as provided for in Articles 75, 243 and 268 of the Act of Accession; whereas the quota duties for 1988 are equal to 72,7 %  of the duties applicable to Chinese cabbage and sweet peppers, to 70 % of the duties applicable to iceberg lettuce and 62,5 % of the duties applicable to peeled tomatoes; whereas, however, Council Regulation (EEC) No 4162/87 of 21 December 1987 laying  down the arrangements applicable to Spain's and Portugal's trade with Israel and amending Regulations (EEC) No 449/86 and (EEC) No 2573/87 (2) provides that those Member States are to postpone application of the preferential arrangements for products in  the fruit and vegetable sector covered by Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 (3) until 31 December 1989 and 31 December 1990 respectively; whereas the provisions of this Regulation concerning the tariff quotas for Chinese cabbage, iceberg lettuce and sweet  peppers therefore apply only to the Community as constituted on 31 December 1985; whereas the Community tariff quotas in question should therefore be opened for the period from 1 to 31 December 1988 for quantities which, pursuant to the pro rata  temporis clause included in the said Protocol, amount for that period to the quantities set out in Article 1;
Whereas equal and continuous access to the quota should be ensured for all Community importers and the rates laid down for the quota should be applied consistently to all imports of the products in question into all Member States until the quota is  exhausted; whereas, however, the quota should not in this case be allocated among the Member States, without prejudice to the drawing against the quota volume of such quantities as they may need, under the conditions and according to the procedure laid  down in Article 2 (1); whereas this method of administration requires close cooperation between the Member States and the Commission and the latter must in particular be able to monitor the rate at which the quota is used and inform the Member States  accordingly;
Whereas if, during the quota period, the tariff quota is almost totally used up, it is indispensable that Member States return to this quota the entirety of the drawings made which have not been used, in order to avoid one part of the Community tariff  quota remaining unused in one Member State when it could be used in others;
Whereas since the Kingdom of Belgium, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg are united within and jointly represented by the Benelux Economic union, any operation concerning the administration of the quota share levied by that  economic union may be carried out by any one of its members,