Date: 2023-07-18Category: Not ApplicableState: Union GovernmentCountry: Europe
Decision No 1/2023 of the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors of 30 June 2023 to amend Decision No 3/2019 of the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors to adopt transitional measures pursuant to Article 95(4) of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement [2023/1474]
Executive Summary:
This decision amends Decision No 3/2019 of the ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors to extend transitional measures under Article 954 of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement. The extension is necessary because the new ACPEU Partnership Agreement will not be ready by the original expiry date. The provisions of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement are extended until 31 October 2023, or until the new agreement comes into force, whichever is earlier.
Key Points / Main Content:
Extension of Transitional Measures:
* Decision No 3/2019 is amended to extend the application of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement provisions.
* The provisions are extended until 31 October 2023, or until the new agreement comes into force or its provisional application, whichever occurs first.
* This extension aims to maintain continuity in relations between the EU and its Member States and the ACP States.
Legal Basis and Rationale:
* The ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors adopts this decision pursuant to Article 954 of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement.
* The decision is based on the delegation of powers from the ACPEU Council of Ministers.
* The new ACPEU Partnership Agreement negotiations were launched in September 2018 but will not be ready for application by the original deadline of 30 June 2023.
Entry into Force:
* This Decision enters into force on 1 July 2023.
Impact Analysis:
ACPEU Council of Ministers:
* Impact: The ACPEU Council of Ministers' delegated powers continue to be exercised by the ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors for adopting transitional measures.
* Action Required: No direct action required, but should note the extension and monitor progress of the new agreement.
ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors:
* Impact: Responsible for implementing the extended transitional measures.
* Action Required: Implement the decision and ensure continued application of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement provisions until 31 October 2023, or the new agreement's entry into force.
African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States:
* Impact: Continued application of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement provisions, maintaining existing relations with the EU.
* Action Required: Continue to adhere to the provisions of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement.
European Union and its Member States:
* Impact: Continued application of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement provisions, maintaining existing relations with the ACP States.
* Action Required: Continue to adhere to the provisions of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement.
Key Entities Referenced
ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors: A committee consisting of representatives from the African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States and the European Union, responsible for adopting transitional measures.
ACPEU Partnership Agreement: The agreement between the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States, and the European Community and its Member States, signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000.
African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States: A group of countries primarily located in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific that have a partnership agreement with the European Union.
European Union: A political and economic union of member states located primarily in Europe.
Decision No 3/2019 of the ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors: A decision of the ACPEU Committee of Ambassadors to adopt transitional measures pursuant to Article 954 of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement.
Article 954 of the ACPEU Partnership Agreement: Article within the ACPEU Partnership Agreement providing a basis for transitional measures during negotiations of a new agreement.
ACPEU Council of Ministers: Council consisting of ministers from the African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States and the European Union.
Brussels: The city where the decision was adopted.
L 181/50 EN Official Journal of the European Union 18.7.2023
ACTS ADOPTED BY BODIES CREATED BY
INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS
DECISION No 1/2023 OF THE ACP-EU COMMITTEE OF AMBASSADORS
of 30 June 2023
to amend Decision No 3/2019 of the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors to adopt transitional
measures pursuant to Article 95(4) of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement [2023/1474]
THE ACP-EU COMMITTEE OF AMBASSADORS,
Having regard to the Partnership Agreement between the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States of
the one part, and the European Community and its Member States, of the other part(1), and in particular Article 15(4) and
Article 16(2) in conjunction with Article 95(4) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) The Partnership Agreement between the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States of the one
part, and the European Community and its Member States, of the other part (the ‘ACP-EU Partnership Agreement’)
was signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 and entered into force on 1 April 2003. In accordance with Decision
No 3/2019 of the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors(2)(the ‘decision on transitional measures’), it is to be applied
until 30 June 2023.
(2) Pursuant to Article 95(4), first subparagraph, of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement, negotiations towards a new
ACP-EU Partnership Agreement (the ‘new Agreement’) were launched in September 2018. The new Agreement will
not be ready to be applied by 30 June 2023, the expiry date of the current legal framework. It is therefore necessary
to amend the decision on transitional measures to further extend the application of the provisions of the ACP-EU
Partnership Agreement.
(3) Article 95(4), second subparagraph, of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement provides for the ACP-EU Council of
Ministers to adopt any transitional measures that may be required until the new Agreement comes into force.
(4) Pursuant to Article 15(4) of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement, on 23 May 2019, the ACP-EU Council of Ministers
delegated the powers to adopt the transitional measures to the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors(3).
(5) It is therefore appropriate that the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors adopt a decision, pursuant to Article 95(4) of
the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement, to amend the decision on transitional measures in order to extend the
application of the provisions of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement until 31 October 2023, or until the entry into
force of the new Agreement or the provisional application between the Union and the ACP States of the new
Agreement, whichever comes first.
(6) The provisions of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement will continue to be applied with the aim of maintaining
continuity in relations between the Union and its Member States, on the one hand, and the ACP States, on the other.
Accordingly, the amended transitional measures are not intended as amendments to the ACP-EU Partnership
Agreement as provided for in Article 95(3) thereof,
(1) OJ L 317, 15.12.2000, p. 3. The ACP-EU Partnership Agreement was amended by the Agreement signed in Luxembourg on 25 June
2005 (OJ L 209, 11.8.2005, p. 27) and by the Agreement signed in Ouagadougou on 22 June 2010 (OJ L 287, 4.11.2010, p. 3).
(2) Decision No 3/2019 of the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors of 17 December 2019 to adopt transitional measures pursuant to
Article 95(4) of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement (OJ L 1, 3.1.2020, p. 3).
(3) Decision No 1/2019 of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers of 23 May 2019 on the delegation of powers to the ACP-EU Committee of
Ambassadors on the decision to adopt transitional measures pursuant to Article 95(4) of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement
(OJ L 146, 5.6.2019, p. 114).18.7.2023 EN Official Journal of the European Union L 181/51
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
In Article 1 of Decision No 3/2019 of the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors, the date ‘30 June 2023’ shall be replaced by
that of ‘31 October 2023’.
Article 2
This Decision shall enter into force on 1 July 2023.
Done at Brussels, 30 June 2023.
For the ACP-EU Council of Ministers
By the ACP-EU Committee of Ambassadors
The President
Sutiawan GUNESSEE