3. At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall take the necessary steps to ensure that a surveillance is kept on:
(a) natural or legal persons of whom there are reasonable grounds for believing that they are contravening or have contravened customs legislation;
(b) places where stocks of goods have been assembled in such a way that there are reasonable grounds for supposing that they are intended as supplies for operations contrary to the customs legislation of the other Party;
(c) movements of goods notified as possibly giving rise to contraventions of customs legislation;
(d) means of transport for which there are reasonable grounds for believing that they have been, or are or may be used in the contravening of customs legislation.
4. Spontaneous Assistance
The Parties shall within their competences provide each other with assistance without prior request where they consider that to be necessary for the correct application of customs legislation, particularly when they obtain information pertaining to:
- Operations detected or planned, which are, appear or would be in contravention of such legislation,
- New means or methods employed in realizing such operations,
- Goods known to be subject to substantial contravention of customs legislation on import, export, transit or any other customs procedure.
5. Form and Substance of Requests for Assistance
1. Requests pursuant to this Protocol shall be made in writing. Documents necessary for the execution of such requests shall accompany the request. When required because of the
Urgency of the situation, oral requests may be accepted, but must be confirmed in writing immediately.
2. Requests pursuant to paragraph 1 of this Article shall include the following information:
(a) the applicant authority making the request;
(b) the measure requested;
(c) the object of and the reason for the request;
(d) the laws, rules and other legal elements involved;
(e) indications as exact and comprehensive as possible on the natural or legal persons being the target of the investigations;
(f) a summary of the relevant facts.
3. Requests shall be submitted in an official language of the requested authority or in a language acceptable to such authority.
4. If a request does not meet the formal requirements, its correction or completion may be demanded; the ordering of precautionary measures may, however, take place.
6. Execution of Requests
1. Requests for assistance will be executed in accordance with the laws, rules and other legal instruments of the requested Party.
2. In order to comply with a request for assistance, the requested authority shall proceed, within its competence and available resources, as though it were acting on its own account or at the request of other authorities of that same Party, by supplying information already possessed, by carrying out appropriate enquiries or by arranging for them to be carried out.
3. Duly authorized officials of a Party may, with the agreement of the other Party involved and within the conditions laid down by the latter, obtain from the offices of the requested authority or other authority for which the requested authority is responsible, information relating to the contravention of customs legislation which the applicant authority needs for the purposes of this Protocol.
4. Officials of a Party may, in particular cases with the agreement of the other Party involved and within the conditions laid down by the latter, be present at enquiries carried out in the latter's territory.
5. When, in the circumstances provided for under this Protocol, officials of one Party are present at enquiries carried out in the territory of the other Party, they must, at all times, be able to furnish proof of their official capacity. They must not wear uniform nor carry arms.
7. Form In Which Information Is to Be Communicated
1. Under the conditions and within the limits laid down in this Protocol, the Parties shall communicate each other information in the form of documents, certified copies of documents, reports and the like.
2. Original files and documents may be transmitted on request only in cases where certified copies would be insufficient. Those files and documents shall be returned at the earliest opportunity.
3. The documents provided for in paragraph 1 may be replaced by computerized information produced in any form for the same purpose. All relevant information for the utilization of the material shall be supplied on request.
8. Exceptions to the Obligation to Provide Assistance
1. The Parties may refuse to give assistance as provided for in this Protocol, provide it partially or provide it subject to certain conditions or requirements, where to do so would:
(a) be likely to prejudice sovereignty, public policy, security or other essential interests; or
(b) violate an industrial, commercial or professional secret.
2. Where the applicant authority asks for assistance which it would itself be unable to provide if asked so by another party, it shall draw attention to that fact in its request. It shall then be left to the requested authority to decide how to respond to such a request.
3. If assistance is withheld or denied, the decision and the reasons therefore must be notified in written form to the applicant authority without delay.
9. Obligation to Observe Confidentiality
1. Any information communicated in whatsoever form pursuant to this Protocol shall be of a confidential nature. It shall be covered by the obligation of official secrecy and shall enjoy the protection extended to like information under the relevant legislation applicable in the Party which received it and the corresponding provisions applying to the Community institutions.
2. Nominative data shall not be transmitted whenever there are reasonable grounds to believe that the transfer or the use made of the data transmitted would be contrary to the basic legal principles of one of the Parties, and, in particular, if the person concerned would suffer a prejudice to fundamental human rights. Upon request, the receiving Party shall inform the furnishing Party of the use made of the information supplied and of the results achieved.
3. Nominative data may only be transmitted to customs authorities and, in the case of need for prosecution purposes, to public prosecution and judicial authorities. Other persons or authorities may obtain such information only upon previous authorization by the furnishing authority.
4. The furnishing Party shall verify the accuracy of the information to be transferred. Whenever it appears that the information supplied was inaccurate or to be deleted, the receiving Party shall be notified without delay. The latter shall be obliged to carry out the correction or deletion.
5. Without prejudice to cases of prevailing public interest, the person concerned may obtain, upon request, information on the data stores and the purpose of this storage.
10. Use of Information
1. Information obtained shall be used solely for the purposes of this Protocol and may be used within each Party for other purposes only with the prior written consent of the administrative authority which furnished the information and shall be subject to any restrictions laid down by that authority.
2. Paragraph 1 shall not impede the use of information in any judicial or administrative proceedings subsequently instituted for failure to comply with customs legislation.
3. The Parties may, in their records of evidence, reports and testimonies and in proceedings and charges brought before the courts, use as evidence information obtained and documents consulted in accordance with the provisions of this Protocol.
11. Experts and Witnesses
An official of a requested authority may be authorized to appear, within the limitations of the authorization granted, as expert or witness in judicial or administrative proceedings regarding the matters covered by this Protocol in the jurisdiction of another Party, and produce such objects, documents or authenticated copies thereof, as may be needed for the proceedings.
The request for an appearance must indicate specifically on what matters and by virtue of what title or qualification the official will be questioned.
12. Assistance Expenses
The Parties shall waive all claims on each other for the reimbursement of expenses incurred pursuant to this Protocol, except, as appropriate, for expenses to experts and witnesses and to
Interpreters and translators who are not dependent upon public services.
1. The management of this Protocol shall be entrusted to the competent services of the Commission of the European Communities and, where appropriate, the customs authorities of the Member States on the one hand and the central customs authorities of Russia on the other. They shall decide on all practical measures and arrangements necessary for its application, taking into consideration rules in the field of data protection. They may recommend to the Cooperation Council amendments which they consider should be made to this Protocol.
2. The Parties shall consult each other and subsequently keep each other informed of the detailed rules of implementation which are adopted in accordance with the provisions of this Protocol.
1. This Protocol shall complement and not impede the application of any agreements on mutual assistance which have been concluded between individual or several Member States and Russia. Nor shall it preclude more extensive mutual assistance granted under such agreements concluded or to be concluded.
2. Without prejudice to Article 10, these agreements do not prejudice Community provisions governing the communication between the competent services of the Commission and the customs authorities of the Member States of any information obtained in customs matters which could be of Community interest.
FINAL ACT
The plenipotentiaries of:
The KINGDOM OF BELGIUM,
The KINGDOM OF DENMARK,
The FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY,
The HELLENIC REPUBLIC,
The KINGDOM OF SPAIN,
The FRENCH REPUBLIC,
IRELAND,
The ITALIAN REPUBLIC, the GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG, the KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS, the PORTUGUESE REPUBLIC,
The UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND,
Contracting Parties to the Treaty establishing the EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, the Treaty establishing the EUROPEAN COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY, and the Treaty establishing the EUROPEAN ATOMIC ENERGY COMMUNITY, hereinafter referred to as the 'Member States', and of
The EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, the EUROPEAN COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY and the EUROPEAN ATOMIC ENERGY COMMUNITY, hereinafter referred to as 'the Community', of the one part, and
The plenipotentiary of the RUSSIAN FEDERATION, hereinafter referred to as 'Russia', of the other part,
Meeting at Corfu this twenty-fourth day of June in the year one thousand nine hundred and ninety-four for the signature of the Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation establishing a partnership between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Russian Federation, of the other part, hereinafter referred to as the 'Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation', have adopted the following texts:
The Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation including its Annexes and the following Protocols:
Protocol 1 on the establishment of a coal and steel contact group,
Protocol 2 on mutual administrative assistance for the correct application of customs legislation.
The plenipotentiaries of the Member States and of the Community and the plenipotentiary of Russia have adopted the texts of the Joint Declarations listed below and annexed to this Final Act:
Joint Declaration in relation to Title III and Article 94 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 10 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 12 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 17 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 18 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 22 (1), second indent of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 24 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Articles 26, 32 and 37 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 28 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 29 (3) of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 30 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 30 (a) and (g) of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to the notion of 'control' in Article 30 (b) and Article 45 of the
Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 30 (h), third subparagraph of the Agreement Joint Declaration in relation to Article 31 of the Agreement Joint Declaration in relation to Article 34 (1) of the Agreement Joint Declaration in relation to Articles 34 and 38 of the Agreement Joint Declaration in relation to Article 35 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 39 (2) (c), second subparagraph of the Agreement on opening ports
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 39 (2) (c), second subparagraph of the Agreement on vessels under a third flag
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 44 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 46 (2) of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 48 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 52 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 53 paragraph 2.2 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 54 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 99 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 101 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 107 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 107 (2) of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Articles 2 and 107 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 112 of the Agreement
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 6 of Protocol 2.
The plenipotentiaries of the Member States and of the Community and the plenipotentiary of
Russia have also taken note of the following exchanges of letters annexed to this Final Act: Exchange of letters in relation to Article 22 of the Agreement Exchange of letters in relation to Article 52 of the Agreement.
The plenipotentiary of Russia has taken note of the Declarations listed below and annexed to this Final Act:
Community Declaration in relation to Article 36 of the Agreement Community Declaration in relation to Article 54 of the Agreement.
The plenipotentiaries of the Member States and of the Community have taken note of the Declaration listed below and annexed to this Final Act:
Declaration by Russia in relation to Article 36 of the Agreement.
Hecho en Corfu, el veinticuatro de junio de mil novecientos noventa y cuatro.
Udferdiget i Corfu den fireogtyvende juni nitten hundrede og fireoghalvfems.
Geschehen zu Korfu am vierundzwanzigsten Juni neunzehnhundertvierundneunzig.
J aeia 0091 EYneona, ooeo aBeioe oYooaneo E 101 B 10 H3eea aneaeuoea aiaiPioa oYooana. Done at Corfu on the twenty-fourth day of June in the year one thousand nine hundred and ninety-four.
Fait a Corfou, le vingt-quatre juin mil neuf cent quatre-vingt-quatorze.
Fatto a Corfu, addi ventiquattro giugno millenovecentonovantaquattro.
Gedaan te Korfoe, de vierentwintigste juni negentienhonderd vierennegentig.
Feito em Corfu, em vinte e quatro de Junho de mil novecentos e noventa e quatro. >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Pour le Royaume de Belgique Voor het Koninkrijk Belgie FUr das Konigreich Belgien >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Pa Kongeriget Danmarks vegne >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Fur die Bundesrepublik Deutschland >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Aea 091 Aee 9 ieeP A 9 iienaoBa >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Por el Reino de Espana >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Pour la Republique fran 9 aise >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Thar cheann Na hEireann For Ireland
>REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Per la Repubblica italiana >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Pour le Grand-Duche de Luxembourg >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Pela Republica Portuguesa >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
For the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Por las Comunidades Europeas For De Europ^iske F^llesskaber
Fur die Europaischen Gemeinschaften Aea oeo AonuoaueYo Eieiuoqoao For the European Communities Pour les Communautes europeennes Per le Comunita europee Voor de Europese Gemeenschappen Pelas Comunidades Europeias
>REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC> >REFERENCE TO A GRAPHIC>
Joint Declaration in relation to Title III and Article 94
For the purpose of Title III and Article 94, the GATT is understood to be the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade signed in Geneva in 1947 as amended, as applied at the date of signature of the present Agreement, if the Parties do not agree otherwise within the framework of the Cooperation Council established under Article 90.
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 10
The Parties agree that the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 10 shall not apply to conditions of import of products to the territory of Russia under financial loans and credits granted for development and humanitarian purposes, technical and humanitarian assistance and other similar arrangements, concluded between Russia and third States or international organizations in so far as such States or international organizations require special treatment for such imports.
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 12
Article 12, within Title III on trade in goods, deals with the question of transit. It is the understanding of the Parties that Article 12 deals exclusively with the freedom of transit of goods. This is according to normal GATT practice. The issue of transit may be taken up in the future negotiations on transport agreements as indicated in Article 43.
The issue of transit may be taken up in the future negotiations on transport agreements as indicated in Article 43.
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 17
The Community and Russia declare that the text of the safeguard clause (Article 17) does not grant GATT safeguard treatment.
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 18
It is understood that the provisions of Article 18 and those of the following paragraph are neither intended to, nor shall, slow down, hinder or impede the procedure provided for in the respective legislation of the Parties regarding antidumping and subsidies investigations.
The Parties agree that, without prejudice to their legislation and practice, when establishing
Normal value due account shall be taken overall, in each case on its merits, when natural comparative advantages can be shown by the manufacturers involved to be held with regard to factors such as access to raw materials, production process, proximity of production to customers and special characteristics of the product.
Joint Declaration in relation to Article 22 (1), second indent