Considerations on COM(2015)25 - EU position within the Association Council EU-Egypt as regards a new protocol concerning ‘originating products’

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(1) Protocol 4 to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Arab Republic of Egypt, of the other part[3] (‘the Agreement’), concerns the definition of the concept of ‘originating products’ and methods of administrative cooperation (‘Protocol 4’).

(2) The Regional Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin[4] (‘the Convention’) lays down provisions on the origin of goods traded under relevant agreements concluded between the Contracting Parties.

(3) The Union and Egypt signed the Convention on 15 June 2011 and 9 October 2013 respectively.

(4) The Union and Egypt deposited their instruments of acceptance with the depositary of the Convention on 26 March 2012 and 23 April 2014 respectively. Consequently, in application of Article 10(3) of the Convention, the Convention entered into force in relation to the Union and Egypt on 1 May 2012 and on 1 June 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 Association Council established by the Agreement should adopt a decision replacing Protocol 4 by a new protocol which, with regard to the rules of origin, refers to the Convention.

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