EC/Egypt agreement: Euro-Mediterranean association agreement, protocol following the accession of Bulgaria and Romania

PURPOSE: to sign and provisionally apply a Protocol between the Community and Egypt to take account of Bulgaria and Romania’s accession to the EU.

PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.

CONTENT: the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Arab Republic of Egypt, of the other part entered into force in 2004 - that is before the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the EU. (See: AVC/2001/0092)

According to the Act of Accession (Article 6 (2)) any new EU Member State, in this case Romania and Bulgaria, will have their accession to the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement agreed by means of a Protocol. The Protocol should be approved through a simplified procedure.

Negotiations to modify the Protocol commenced between the Commission and Arab Republic of Egypt in October 2006. The negotiations have now been concluded. The purpose of this proposal, therefore, is firstly, for the Council to sign the Protocol and secondly, to conclude the Protocol.

The most important aspects of the Protocol are the provisions for the accession of the new Member States to the EU-Egypt Association Agreement and the inclusion of the new official languages of the EU in order to take account of enlargement. Annex I of the Protocol also sets out arrangements applicable to imports into the Community of agricultural products originating in Egypt.

The European Parliament will be called upon to give its assent to this Protocol.