ANNEX 15B CODE OF CONDUCT FOR PANELISTS AND OTHERS ENGAGED IN DISPUTE SETTLEMENT PROCEEDINGS UNDER THIS AGREEMENT1 Definitions I. For the purposes of this Annex: (a) assistant means a person who, under the terms of appointment of a panelist, conducts research or provides support for the panelist, and works under the direction and control of a panelist to assist with case-specific tasks; (b) candidate means a person who is under consideration for selection as a panelist; (c) panelist means a member of a panel established under Article 15.8 (Establishment of a Panel); (d) proceeding, unless otherwise specified, means the proceeding of a panel under this Chapter; and (e) staff, in respect of a panelist, means persons under the direction and control of the panelist, other than assistants. Responsibilities to the Process 2. Every panelist shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety, shall be independent and impartial, shall avoid direct and indirect conflicts of interests and shall observe high standards of conduct so that the integrity and impartiality of the dispute settlement process are preserved. Former panelists shall comply with the obligations established in paragraphs 17 through 20 of this Annex. Disclosure Obligations 3. Prior to confirmation of his or her selection as a panelist under this Agreement, a candidate shall disclose any interest, relationship or matter that is likely to affect his or her independence or impartiality or that might reasonably create an appearance of impropriety or bias in the proceeding. To this end, a candidate shall make all reasonable efforts to become aware of any such interests, relationships and matters. 4. Once selected, a panelist shall continue to make all reasonable efforts to become aware of any interests, relationships and matters referred to in paragraph 3 and shall disclose them by communicating them in writing to the Joint Committee for consideration by the Parties. The obligation to disclose is a continuing duty, which requires a panelist to 1 For greater certainty, Annex I 5B is applicable for the purpose of Article 15. 7 (Good Offices, Conciliation or Mediation), unless otherwise provided by the instruments of good offices, conciliation and mediation. 15-B-I
disclose any such interests, relationships and matters that may arise during any stage of the proceeding. Performance of Duties by Panelists 5. A panelist shall comply with the provisions of Chapter 15 (Dispute Settlement) and its Annexes. 6. On selection, a panelist shall perform his or her duties thoroughly and expeditiously throughout the course of the proceeding with fairness and diligence. 7. A panelist shall not deny other panelists the opportunity to participate in all aspects of the proceeding. 8. A panelist shall consider only those issues raised in the proceeding and necessary to rendering a decision and shall not delegate the duty to decide to any other person. 9. A panelist shall take all appropriate steps to ensure that the panelist's assistant and staff are aware of, and comply with, paragraphs 2, 3, 4, 19, 20 and 21 of this Annex. 10. A panelist shall not engage in ex parte contacts concerning the proceeding. 11. A panelist shall not communicate matters concerning actual or potential violations of this Annex by another panelist unless the communication is to both Parties or is necessary to ascertain whether that panelist has violated or may violate this Annex. Each panelist shall keep a record and render a final account of the time devoted to the panel proceedings and of his or her expenses, as well as the time and expenses of his or her staff and assistants. ~ndependence and Impartiality of Panelists 12. A panelist shall be independent and impartial. A panelist shall act in a fair manner and shall avoid creating an appearance of impropriety or bias. 13. A panelist shall not be influenced by self-interest, outside pressure, political considerations, public clamour, loyalty to a Party or fear of criticism. 14. A panelist shall not, directly or indirectly, incur any obligation or accept any benefit that would in any way interfere, or appear to interfere, with the proper performance of the panelist's duties. 15. A panelist shall not use his or her position on the panel to advance any personal or private interests. A panelist shall avoid actions that may create the impression that others are in a special position to influence the panelist. A panelist shall make every effort to prevent or discourage others from representing themselves as being in such a position. 16. A panelist shall not allow past or existing financial, business, professional, family or social relationships or responsibilities to influence the panelist's conduct or judgment. 15-B-2
17. A panelist shall avoid entering into any relationship, or acquiring any financial interest, that is likely to affect the panelist's impartiality or that might reasonably create an appearance of impropriety or bias. Duties in Certain Situations 18. A panelist or former panelist shall avoid actions that may create the appearance that the panelist was biased in carrying out the panelist's duties or would benefit from the decision or report of the panel. Maintenance of Confidentiality 19. A panelist or former panelist shall not at any time disclose or use any non-public information concerning the proceeding or acquired during the proceeding except for the purposes of the proceeding and shall not, in any case, disclose or use any such information to gain personal advantage, or advantage for others, or to affect adversely the interest of others. 20. A panelist shall not disclose a panel report, or parts thereof, prior to its publication. 2 L A panelist or former panelist shall not at any time disclose the deliberations of a panel, or any panelist's view, except as required by legal or constitutional requirements. 22. A panelist shall not make a public statement regarding the panel proceeding. 15-8-3
CHAPTER 16 EXCEPTIONS ARTICLE 16.1 General Exceptions I. For the purposes of Chapters 2 (Trade in Goods), 3 (Rules of Origin), 4 (Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation), 5 (Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures), 6 (Technical Barriers to Trade), and 7 (Trade Remedies) and the Annexes to the abovementioned Chapters, Article XX of the GATT 1994 and its interpretative note are incorporated into and form part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis. 2. For the purposes of Chapters 8 (Trade in ervices) and its Annexes, and Chapter 9 (Digital Trade) 1, Article XIV of the GA TS and its footnotes, are incorporated into and form part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis. ARTICLE 16.2 Security Exceptions 1. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed: service. (a) to require any Party to furnish any information, the disclosure of which it considers contrary to its essential security interests; or (b) to prevent any Party from taking any action which it considers necessary for the protection of its essential security interests: (i) relating to fissionable and fusionable materials or the materials from which they are derived; (ii) relating to the traffic in arms, ammunition and implements of war and to such traffic in other goods and materials as is carried on directly or indirectly for the purpose of supplying a military establishment; (iii) relating to the supply of services as carried out directly or indirectly for the purpose of provisioning a military establishment; (iv) relating to the protection of critical public infrastructure, including, but not limited to, critical communications infrastructures, power infrastructures and water infrastructures, from deliberate attempts intended to disable or degrade such infrastructures; (v) taken in time of domestic emergency, or war or other emergency in international relations; or 1 This paragraph is without prejudice to whether a Party considers a digital product to be a good or I 6-1
(c) to prevent any Party from taking any action in pursuance of its obligations under the United Nations Charter for the maintenance of international peace and security. ARTICLE 16.3 Taxation I. Nothing in this Agreement shall apply to any taxation measure.2 2. Nothing in this Agreement shal I affect the rights and obligations of a Party under any tax convention. In the event of any inconsistency between this Agreement and any such tax convention, thattax convention shall prevail to the extent of the inconsistency. 1 For the avoidance of doubt, provisions where corresponding rights and obligations are also granted or imposed under the WTO Agreement shall apply to taxation measures. 16-2
CHAPTER 17 ADMINISTRATION OF THE AGREEMENT ARTICLE 17.1 Joint Committee I. The Parties hereby establish a Joint Committee. 2. The Joint Committee: (a) shall be composed ofrepresentatives of Georgia and the UAE. The Parties shall be represented by senior officials designated by them for this purpose, unless otherwise agreed by the Parties; and (b) may establish standing or ad hoc sub-committees or working groups and assign any of its powers thereto. 3. The functions of the Joint Committee shall be as follows: (a) to review and assess the results and overall operation of this Agreement in the light of its objectives and the experience gained during its application; (b) to consider and recommend any amendments to this Agreement that may be proposed by either Party, including the modification of concessions made under this Agreement; (c) to endeavour to amicably resolve disputes between the Parties arising from the interpretation or application of this Agreement; (d) to supervise and coordinate the work ofall sub-committees and working groups established under this Agreement; (e) to consider any other matter that may affect the operation of this Agreement; (f) if requested by either Party, to propose a mutually agreed interpretation of the provisions of this Agreement; (g) to adopt decisions or make recommendations as envisaged by this Agreement; and (h) to carry out any other functions as may be agreed by the Parties. ARTICLE 17.2 Rules of Procedures of the Joint Committee I. The Joint Committee shall meet within one year from the entry into force of this Agreement. Thereafter, it shall meet whenever necessary, but normally once every two years, to consider any matter relating to this Agreement. The regular sessions of the 17-1
Joint Committee shall be held alternately in the territories of either Party. The regular sessions shall be chaired successively by each Party. 2. The Joint Committee shall also hold special sessions without undue delay from the date of a request thereof from either Party. The special sessions shall be chaired by the host Party requesting the session. 3. The Joint Committee shall ordinarily meet at the level of senior officials unless otherwise agreed by the Parties, or there is a specific request by either Party to convene the meeting at a higher level. 4. The Joint Committee shall take decisions and make recommendations on any matter within its functions as set out in Article 17.1 (Joint Committee), by mutual agreement. The implementation of the decisions shall be subject to compliance with either Party's applicable internal legal requirements and procedures. ARTICLE 17.3 Communications 1. For the purpose of facilitating communication between the Parties on any matter covered by this Agreement, the following contact points are designated: (c) For Georgia, Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development; and ( d) For the UAE, the Ministry of Economy. 2. All official communications in relation to this Agreement shall be in the English language. 17-2
Chapter 18. FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 18.1. Annexes and Footnotes
The Annexes and footnotes to this Agreement constitute an integral part of this Agreement.
Article 18.2. Amendments
1. The Parties may agree in writing to amend this Agreement.
2. Either Party may submit proposals for amendments to this Agreement to the Joint Committee for its consideration and recommendation.
3. Amendments to this Agreement shall, after consideration by the Joint Committee, enter into force in accordance with the procedure required for the entry into force of this Agreement. Such amendments shall constitute an integral part of this Agreement.
4. If any amendment is made to the provisions of the WTO Agreement or any other international agreement, to which both Parties are party and that has been incorporated into this Agreement, the Parties shall consult on whether to amend this Agreement accordingly, unless this Agreement provides otherwise.
Article 18.3. Accession
Any country or group of countries may accede to this Agreement subject to such terms and conditions as may be agreed between the country or group of countries and the Parties and subject to the following approval in accordance with the applicable internal legal requirements and procedures of each Party and such acceding country or group of countries.
Article 18.4. Duration and Termination
1. This Agreement shall be valid for an indefinite period.
2. Either Party may terminate this Agreement by written notification to the other Party, and such termination shall take effect six months after the date of the notification.
Article 18.5. Entry Into Force
1. This Agreement is subject to ratification, acceptance or approval in accordance with the respective internal legal procedure of each Party.
2. The Parties shall notify each other on the completion of their internal procedure necessary for the entry into force of the Agreement in writing, through diplomatic channels, within a period of 30 days from such completion.
3. This Agreement shall enter into force 30 days after the receipt of the last written notification on the completion of an internal procedure.
Article 18.6. Authentic Texts
This Agreement is done in triplicate in Arabic, Georgian and English languages. All texts shall be equally authentic. In case of any divergence, the English text shall prevail.
Conclusion
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.
DONE in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on the 10th day of October 2023.
FOR GEORGIA
H.E. LEVAN DAVITASHVILI
VICE PRIME MINISTER, MINISTER OF ECONOMY AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
FOR THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
DR. THANI BIN AHMAD AL ZEYOUDI
MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOREIGN TRADE
Attachments
ANNEX 18A. ENERGY RESOURCES SECTOR
In connection with this Agreement, the Parties have reached the following understandings:
(a) The UAE is an independent, sovereign, federal State, with seven sovereign Member Emirates (Member Emirates), and pursuant to its Constitution, each Member Emirate retains full sovereignty, sovereign rights and exclusive jurisdiction in its territory over its natural resources and wealth of which the Energy Resources Sector is the subject matter of this Annex. For the purposes of this Annex, "Energy Resources Sector" shall mean all hydrocarbons such as oil, gas, and condensates, derivates and primary by-products thereof with respect to ownership, management, exploration, development and production, exploitation (including reservoir management), transportation, storage, refining and processing, and distribution up to and including retail distribution.
(b) In recognition of the foregoing, this Agreement shall not grant any rights to Georgia or create any obligations for the UAE or any of its Member Emirates with regard to the Energy Resources Sector. Accordingly, the Energy Resources Sector is excluded from all aspects and provisions of this Agreement, including Chapter 15 (Dispute Settlement). All matters pertaining to the Energy Resources Sector of any of the Member Emirates are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Member Emirates, and all determinations and decisions of each Member Emirate made by such Member Emirate's competent authorities pertaining to the Energy Resources Sector (Competent Authorities) that are the subject of its jurisdiction shall be final, binding and not subject to review or challenge.
(c) Subsequent to the date of entry into effect of this Agreement and in the event that the UAE with the concurrence of the Member Emirates' Competent Authorities grants any rights excluded by this Annex to a third country with respect to the Energy Resources Sector by a regional trade agreement, such rights shall be granted to Georgia.
(d) Notwithstanding the above, in the event of a difference in the interpretation or application of this Annex, the UAE and Georgia commit to have recourse to consultations at the request of either Party. For the purpose of such consultations, Article 15.6 (Consultations) of this Agreement except paragraph 8, shall apply mutatis mutandis. The Parties shall make every attempt through consultation to arrive at a mutually satisfactory resolution within 60 days from the request.
(e) In the event that the UAE and Georgia fail to achieve a mutually agreed solution within 60 days following recourse to consultations, or if the UAE fails to comply with the mutually agreed solution within the agreed timeframe, the only recourse of Georgia shall be that it may suspend benefits under this Agreement proportionate to the trade effects which the measure in question causes or threatens to cause. Moreover, Georgia shall repeal its compensatory measure to the extent that the UAE's measure in question ceases to apply. The above-mentioned procedure shall also apply in case of any dispute relating to whether the Georgian's compensatory measure is proportionate, with the UAE likewise ultimately having the right to suspend benefits proportionately. (f) The UAE and Georgia further agree that this Annex shall constitute an integral part of this Agreement and that, in the unlikely event of any inconsistency between this Annex and any provisions of this Agreement, this Annex shall prevail to the extent of that inconsistency.