Article 26. Establishment of the Joint Committee
1. A Joint Committee is hereby established in which each Party shall be represented. The Joint Committee shall be responsible for the administration of the Agreement and shall ensure its proper implementation.
2. For the purpose of the proper implementation of this Agreement, the Parties to it shall exchange information and, at the request of any Party, shall hold consultations within the Joint Committee. The Joint Committee shall keep under review the possibility of further removal of the obstacles to trade between the EFTA States and Israel.
3. The Joint Committee may, under the conditions laid down in paragraph 3 of Article 27, take decisions in the cases provided for in this Agreement. On other matters, the Joint Committee may make recommendations.
Article 27. Procedures of the Joint Committee
1. For the proper implementation of this Agreement the Joint Committee shall meet at an appropriate level whenever necessary but at least once a year. Each Party may request that a meeting be held.
2. The Committee shall act by common agreement.
3. If a representative in the Joint Committee of a Party has accepted a decision subject to the fulfilment of constitutional or legislative requirements, the decision shall enter into force, if no later date is contained therein, on the day the lifting of the reservation is notified. 4
4. For the purpose of this Agreement the Joint Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure which shall, inter alia, contain provisions for convening meetings and for the designation of the Chairman and his term of office.
5. The Joint Committee may decide to set up such sub-committees and working parties as it considers necessary to assist it in accomplishing its tasks.
Article 28. Evolutionary Clause
1. Where a Party considers that it would be useful in the interests of the economies of the Parties to develop the relations established by the Agreement by extending them to fields not covered thereby, it shall submit a reasoned request to them.
The Parties may instruct the Joint Committee to examine this request and, where appropriate, to make recommendations to them.
2. Agreements resulting from the procedure referred to in paragraph 1 will be subject to ratification or approval by the Parties in accordance with their own procedures.
Article 29. Services and Investments
1. The Parties recognize the growing importance of certain areas, such as services and investments. In their efforts to gradually deepen and broaden their co-operation, they will co-operate with the aim of achieving a progressive liberalization and mutual opening of markets for investments and trade in services, taking into account relevant GATT work. They will endeavour to accord treatment no less favourable than that accorded to domestic and foreign operators in their territories on condition that a balance of rights and obligations exists between the Parties. 2
2. The modalities for this co-operation will be negotiated in the Joint Committee. Arrangements resulting therefrom will, where necessary, be subject to ratification or approval by the Parties in accordance with their own procedures and be applied within the framework of this Agreement.
Article 30. Protocols and Annexes
The Protocols and Annexes to this Agreement are an integral part of it. The Joint Committee may decide to amend the Protocols and Annexes.
Article 31. Customs Unions, Free Trade Areas and Frontier Trade
This Agreement shall not prevent the maintenance or establishment of customs unions, free trade areas or arrangements for frontier trade to the extent that these do not negatively affect the trade regime and in particular the provisions concerning rules of origin provided for by this Agreement.
Article 32. Territorial Application
This Agreement shall apply to the territories of the Parties.
Article 33. Entry Into Force
1. This Agreement shall enter into force on 1 January 1993 in relation to those Signatory States which by then have deposited their instruments of ratification or acceptance with the Depositary, provided that Israel is among the States that have deposited their instruments of ratification or acceptance.
2. In relation to a Signatory State depositing its instrument of ratification or acceptance after 1 January 1993, this Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following the deposit of its instrument, provided that Israel is among the States that have deposited their instruments of ratification or acceptance. 3
3. Any Signatory State may already at the time of signature declare that, during an initial phase, it shall apply the Agreement provisionally, if the Agreement cannot enter into force in relation to that State by 1 January 1993, provided that in relation to Israel the Agreement has entered into force.
Article 34. Amendments
Amendments to this Agreement other than those referred to in Article 30, which are approved by the Joint Committee, shall be submitted to the Parties for ratification or acceptance and shall enter into force if ratified or accepted by all the Parties. The instruments of ratification or acceptance shall be deposited with the Depositary.
Article 35. Accession
1. Any State, Member of the European Free Trade Association, may accede to this Agreement, provided that the Joint Committee decides to approve its accession, on such terms and conditions as may be set out in that decision. The instrument of accession shall be deposited with the Depositary.
2. In relation to an acceding State, the Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the third month following the deposit of its instrument of accession.
Article 36. Withdrawal and Expiration
1. Each Party may withdraw from this Agreement by means of a written notification to the Depositary. The withdrawal shall take effect six months after the date on which the notification is received by the Depositary.
2. If Israel withdraws, the Agreement shall expire at the end of the notice period, and if all EFTA States withdraw it shall expire at the end of the latest notice period.
3. Any EFTA Member State which withdraws from the Convention establishing the European Free Trade Association shall ipso facto on the same day as the withdrawal takes effect cease to be a Party.
Article 37 (1). Depositary
The Government of Norway, acting as Depositary, shall notify all States that have signed or acceded to this Agreement of the deposit of any instrument of ratification, acceptance or accession, the entry into force of this Agreement, of its expiry or of any withdrawal therefrom.
Conclusion
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned plenipotentiaries, being duly authorized thereto, have signed the present Agreement.
DONE at Geneva, this 17th day of September 1992, in a single authentic copy in the English language which shall be deposited with the Government of Sweden. The Depositary shall transmit certified copies to all Signatory States and States acceding to this Agreement.