Considerations on COM(2015)26 - EU position within the Joint Committee EU-Palestinian Authority as regards a new protocol concerning ‘originating products’

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dossier COM(2015)26 - EU position within the Joint Committee EU-Palestinian Authority as regards a new protocol concerning ‘originating products’.
document COM(2015)26 EN
date January 29, 2015
 
(1) Protocol 3 to the Euro-Mediterranean Interim Association Agreement on trade and cooperation between the European Community, of the one part, and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) for the benefit of the Palestinian Authority of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, of the other part[4] (‘the Agreement’), concerns the definition of the concept of ‘originating products’ and methods of administrative cooperation (‘Protocol 3’).

(2) The Regional Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin[5] (‘the Convention’) lays down provisions on the origin of goods traded under relevant agreements concluded between the Contracting Parties.

(3) The Union and Palestine[6] signed the Convention on 15 June 2011 and 18 September 2013 respectively.

(4) The Union and Palestine deposited their instruments of acceptance with the depositary of the Convention on 26 March 2012 and 27 May 2014 respectively. Consequently, in application of Article 10(3) of the Convention, the Convention entered into force in relation to the Union and Palestine on 1 May 2012 and on 1 July 2014 respectively.

(5) Article 6 of the Convention provides that each Contracting Party is to take appropriate measures to ensure that the Convention is effectively applied. To that effect, the Joint Committee established by the Agreement should adopt a decision replacing Protocol 3 by a new protocol which, with regard to the rules of origin, refers to the Convention.

(6) The position of the Union within the Joint Committee should therefore be based on the attached draft decision.