PURPOSE: to conclude a Protocol to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement establishing a partnership between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Uzbekistan, of the other part, amending the Agreement in order to extend the provisions of the Agreement to bilateral trade in textiles, taking account of the expiry of the bilateral textiles Agreement.
PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.
BACKGROUND: on 9 June 2010, the Council authorised the Commission to enter into negotiations with Uzbekistan to amend the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement establishing a partnership between the European Communities and their Member States, on the one part, and the Republic of Uzbekistan, of the other part, so as to ensure that the principles which apply to trade in other goods are also extended formally to trade in textile products. These negotiations have been successfully concluded and the Protocol amending the Agreement by deleting Article 16, and all references thereto, was initialled on 1 July 2010.
In the framework of the negotiations it was agreed between both parties to carry out a clean up exercise and to delete an obsolete technical provision that expired in 1998 and the corresponding Annex referring to it
In accordance with a Council Decision, the Protocol to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement establishing a partnership between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and Uzbekistan, of the other part, amending the Agreement in order to extend the provisions of the Agreement to bilateral trade in textiles, taking account of the expiry of the bilateral textiles Agreement, was signed, subject to its conclusion.
It is now necessary to conclude the Protocol on behalf of the Union.
IMPACT ASSESSMENT: no impact assessment was carried out.
LEGAL BASIS: Article 207, in conjunction with Article 218(6)(a)(v) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
CONTENT: under this proposal, the Protocol to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement establishing a partnership between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and Uzbekistan, of the other part, amending the Agreement in order to extend the provisions of the Agreement to bilateral trade in textiles, taking account of the expiry of the bilateral textiles Agreement, is hereby approved on behalf of the Union.
The text of the protocol is attached to the proposal.
For further details of this Protocol, please refer to the summary of the previous initial legislative document dated 15/11/2010.
BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS: this proposal has no implications for the Union.