EC/Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia FYROM agreement: transports

OBJECTIVE: conclusion of an agreement in the field of transport between the Community and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia concerning transit and road, rail and combined transport. SUBSTANCE: the agreement, which was initialled on 19 June 1996, provides for the development of new transport infrastructure on the North to South-East route and on certain other routes within the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, including associated multimodal terminals. The Community will co-finance the completion of the work under the protocol on financial cooperation between the two parties, which will expire on 31 December 2000. . The planned infrastructure for rail and combined transport is to respect environmental imperatives and supporting measures are to encourage the development of combined transport. . Where road transport is concerned, access to transit traffic is to be completely liberalized in both directions when the agreement enters into force. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia accepts that Community vehicles complying with Community rules on weights and dimensions may circulate freely on its territory until 31 December 2002. After that date, vehicles which do not comply with Macedonian standards will be taxed more heavily. . Where transit through the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is concerned, the agreement also includes a system of ecopoints similar to that provided for by Protocol No 9 to the Act of Accession of Austria to the Union, with effect from 1 January 1999. The purpose of this system is to ensure effectively that there is no discrimination between Community and Macedonian heavy goods vehicles. . Finally, the agreement provides for standards on gaseous emissions and noise levels for heavy goods vehicles. Provisions on simplifying formalities for the transit of goods and on encouraging customs cooperation are also included. The scope of the agreement may be widened at the request of a Member State or of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. . A Joint Committee is to ensure the proper implementation of the agreement. . The agreement is concluded for a period ending on 31 December 2003 and is tacitly renewable. The legal basis used for its adoption is Article 75 of the EC Treaty. �