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Article 115 EEC Treaty and trade with Eastern Europe

  • East-West Trade
  • Published:
Intereconomics

Abstract

Article 115 EEC Treaty enables a member state to block indirect imports of goods stemming from countries outside the Community which have first been imported by another member state, and thus helps to preserve the existence of national commercial policies as opposed to a uniform Community system. The following article examines the application of Art. 115 to the Community's trade with Eastern Europe.

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References

  1. See for example Art. 11 of Regulation 1765/82 O.J. 1982, L 195/1.

  2. Art. 10 EEC Treaty.

  3. Art. 9 (2) EEc Treaty.

  4. See European Court of Justice (1971) ECR 900, (1976) ECR 442, (1976) ECR 1937; see also Commission Decision 87/433 governing the application of Art. 115, O. J. 1987, L 238/26.

  5. O. J. 1987, L 238/26.

  6. See in particular the contributions at the colloquium “The Political and Legal Framework of Trade Relations Between the European Community and Eastern Europe” on 17–18th December 1988 at the University of Ghent. The reports of this colloquium, will be published by Martinus Nijhoff, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, in the latter part of 1988.

  7. J. Pinder: How active will the Community be in East-West Economic Relations?, in: I. John: EEC Policy towards Eastern Europe, Westmead, Saxon House, 1975, p. 71.

  8. E. L. M. Volker: Major instruments of the common commercial policy, in: Protectionism and the European Community, Deventer, Kluwer, 1987, p. 35.

  9. J. Maslen: The European Community's Relations with State-trading Countries 1981–83, Yearbook of European Law, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1984, pp. 324–345. In 1974 the Community offered state-trading countries a model agreement incorporating a most favoured nation clause and covering all fields of trade. Only China and later Romania responded. The EEC subsequently resorted to an autonomous import régime. See G. Lysen: EEC-CMEA/Eastern Europe, Legal Aspects on Trade and Co-operation, Legal Issues of European Integration, 1987, p. 98.

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  10. O. J. 1982, L 195/1. This regulation governs the imports of goods from 11 state-trading countries excluding China for whom a special regulation exists, namely Regulation 1766/82. These countries are Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia, the GDR, the Soviet Union, Vietnam, North Korea and Mongolia.

  11. O. J. 1983, L 346/6 (amended by Regulation 2273/87 O. J. 1987, L 217/1).

  12. See C. W. A. Timmermans: Community Commercial Policy on Textiles: A Legal Imbroglio in Protectionism and the European Community, Deventer, Kluwer, 1987, p. 164. See O. J. 1987, L 146/63.

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  13. Regulation 3589/82 O. J. 1982, L 374/106 amended by Regulations 4136/68 O. J. 1986, L 387/42 and 768/88 O. J. 1988, L 84/1.

  14. For the quotas laid down for 1987 see Council Decision 87/60 O. J. 1987, L 31/87, amended by Council Decision 88/83 O. J. 1988, L 43/1.

  15. O. J. 1980, L 352/5; cf. J. Martonyi: Eastern European Countries and the GATT in the Political and Legal Framework of Trade Relations between the European Community and Eastern Europe, Ghent Coll. 1987; see footnote 7.

  16. See for example O. J. 1983, C 276/4; O. J. 1984, C 321/3; O. J. 1985, C 121/6; O. J. 1985, C 142/14; O. J. 1986, C 97/5; O. J. 1987, C 17/2; O. J. 1987, C 283/2.

  17. O. J. 1980, L 352/5.

  18. See White Paper on Completion of the Internal Market, 1985, COM (85) 310 def 11–12.

  19. O. J. 1987, L 238/26.

  20. Ibid., O. J. 1987, L 238/26. Para. 11 of the Preamble.

  21. Ibid., O. J. 1987, L 238/26. Art. 3 (3), (f).

  22. G. Yannopoulos: The European Community's External Policy, in: Journal of World Trade Law, 1985, p. 451.

  23. P. Vogelenzang: Two Aspects of Article 115 EEC Treaty: its use to buttress community-set sub-quotas, and the Commission's monitoring system, in: Common Market Law Review, 1981, p. 174.

  24. Opinion of the European Court of Justice, 11 November 1975 (1975) ECR 1355; cf. also C. W. A. Timmermans; 1987, op. cit., Community Commercial Policy on Textiles: A Legal Imbroglio in Protectionism and the European Community, Deventer, Kluwer, 1987, pp 164–165; C. W. A. Timmermans: Lalibre circulation des marchandises et la politique commerciale commune, in: Relations extérieures de la Communauté européenne et marché intérieur: aspects juridiques et fonctionnels, Bruges, Story, 1988, pp. 102–103; but cf. also P. Vogelenzang, op. cit., Two Aspects of Article 115 EEC Treaty: its use to buttress community-set sub-quotas, and the Commission's monitoring system, in: Common Market Law Review, 1981, p. 180.

  25. C. W. A. Timmermans, 1987, op. cit., Community Commercial Policy on Textiles: A Legal Imbroglio in Protectionism and the European Community, Deventer, Kluwer, 1987, p. 168–169 and 176.

  26. cf. O. J. 1982, L 168/29 and O. J. 1982, L 243/20 where intra-Community surveillance measures were authorised.

  27. European Court of Justice, 5 March 1986, Tezi versus Commission and versus Minister of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands, (1986) ECR 887 and 933.

  28. D. Oldekop: EEC-Comecon Relations, Asser Institute, Coll. on European Law 1979, p. 15. These agreements were concluded between 1976–79 after the conclusion of the Multifibre Arrangement in 1973.

  29. For agricultural agreements see for Poland and Romania O. J. 1981, L 137, for Czechoslovakia O. J. 1982, L204 for Hungary O. J. 1981, L 150 and for Bulgaria O. J. 1982, L 43. For iron and steel agreements see reference by J. Maslen, op. cit., The European Community's Relations with State-trading Countries 1981–83, Yearbook of European Law, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1984, p. 331.

  30. O. J. 1980, L 352/6 implemented by Regulation 3419/83, O. J. 1983, L 346/1.

  31. O. J. 1988, L 157/34 and 35.

  32. European Court of Justice, 30 November 1977, Cayrol versus Rivoira (1977) ECR 2271.

  33. See footnotes 14 and 29. Regulation 3589/82 O. J. 1982, L 374/106 amended by Regulations 4136/68 O. J. 1986, L 387/42 and 768/88 O. J. 1988, L 84/1. In 1985 out of the 28 authorisations granted with regard to Eastern European goods France received 12 and Italy 6, in 1986 out of 15 authorisations France received 7 und Italy 4 and in 1987 out of 12 authorisations France received 6 and Italy 4.

  34. (1986) ECR 896.

  35. (1986) ECR 925.

  36. O. J. 1983, L 247/8.

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  1. Fund for Joint Basic Research (F.K.F.O.), Seminarie voor Europees Recht, Rijksuniversiteit, Ghent, Belgium

    Francis Sarre

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Sarre, F. Article 115 EEC Treaty and trade with Eastern Europe. Intereconomics 23, 233–240 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02925118

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