31.3.2009 |
EN |
Official Journal of the European Union |
L 84/33 |
COUNCIL DECISION
of 21 May 2008
on the signing and provisional application of the Agreement between the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on certain aspects of air services
(2009/302/EC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 80(2) in conjunction with the first sentence of the first subparagraph of Article 300(2) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas:
(1) |
The Council authorised the Commission on 5 June 2003 to open negotiations with third countries on the replacement of certain provisions in existing bilateral agreements with a Community agreement. |
(2) |
On behalf of the Community, the Commission has negotiated an Agreement with Pakistan on certain aspects of air services in accordance with the mechanisms and directives in the Annex to the Council Decision of 5 June 2003 authorising the Commission to open negotiations with third countries on the replacement of certain provisions in existing bilateral agreements with a Community agreement. |
(3) |
Subject to its possible conclusion at a later date, the Agreement negotiated by the Commission should be signed and provisionally applied, |
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
Article 1
The signing of the Agreement between the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on certain aspects of air services is hereby approved on behalf of the Community, subject to the Council Decision concerning the conclusion of the said Agreement.
The text of the Agreement is attached to this Decision.
Article 2
The President of the Council is hereby authorised to designate the person(s) empowered to sign the Agreement on behalf of the Community subject to its conclusion.
Article 3
Pending its entry into force, the Agreement shall be applied provisionally from the first day of the first month following the date on which the parties have notified each other of the completion of the necessary procedures for this purpose.
Article 4
The President of the Council is hereby authorised to make the notification provided for in Article 8(2) of the Agreement.
Done at Brussels, 21 May 2008.
For the Council
The President
M. ZVER
AGREEMENT
between the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on certain aspects of air services
THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY,
of the one part, and
THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF PAKISTAN (hereinafter referred to as Pakistan),
of the other part,
(hereinafter referred to as the Parties)
NOTING that certain provisions in bilateral air service agreements between several Member States of the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan need to be brought into conformity with Community law,
NOTING that the European Community has exclusive competence with respect to several aspects that may be included in bilateral air service agreements between Member States of the European Community and third countries,
NOTING that European Community air carriers established in a Member State have been granted the right to non-discriminatory access to air routes between that Member State and third countries by the European Community under Community law,
HAVING REGARD to the agreements between the European Community and the four European countries listed in Annex ΙΙΙ providing for the possibility for the nationals of these countries to acquire ownership in air carriers licensed in accordance with European Community law,
RECOGNISING that all matters relating to bilateral air service agreements between Member States of the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan must be in conformity with the laws of the parties in order to establish a sound legal basis for air services between the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and to preserve the continuity of such air services,
NOTING that provisions of the bilateral air services agreements between Member States of the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, which are not incompatible with European Community law and Pakistani law do not need to be affected by this agreement,
RECOGNISING that provisions in bilateral air service agreements concluded between Member States of the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan which (i) require or favour the adoption of agreements between undertakings, decisions by associations of undertakings or concerted practices that prevent, distort or restrict competition between air carriers on the relevant routes; or (ii) reinforce the effects of any such agreement, decision or concerted practice; or (iii) delegate to air carriers or other private economic operators the responsibility for taking measures that prevent, distort or restrict competition between air carriers on the relevant routes may render ineffective the competition rules applicable to undertakings,
NOTING that it is not a purpose of the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in this agreement to increase the total volume of air traffic between the European Community and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, to affect the balance between Community air carriers and air carriers of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, or to amend the provisions of existing bilateral air service agreements concerning traffic rights,
HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:
Article 1
General provisions
1. For the purposes of this Agreement, ‘Member States’ shall mean Member States of the European Community.
2. References in each of the agreements listed in Annex Ι to nationals of the Member State that is a party to that agreement shall be understood as referring to nationals of the Member States of the European Community.
3. References in each of the agreements listed in Annex Ι to air carriers or airlines of the Member State that is a party to that agreement shall be understood as referring to air carriers or airlines designated by that Member State.
Article 2
Designation by a Member State
1. The provisions in paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article shall prevail over the corresponding provisions in the Articles listed in Annex ΙΙ(a) and (b) respectively, in relation to the designation of an air carrier by the Member State concerned, its authorisations and permissions granted by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and the refusal, revocation, suspension or limitation of the authorisations or permissions of the air carrier, respectively.
2. On receipt of a designation by a Member State of the European Community, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan shall grant the appropriate authorisations and permissions with minimum procedural delay, provided that:
(i) |
the air carrier is established in the territory of the designating Member State under the Treaty establishing the European Community and has a valid Operating Licence from a Member State in accordance with European Community law; and |
(ii) |
effective regulatory control of the air carrier is exercised and maintained by the Member State responsible for issuing its Air Operator’s Certificate and the relevant aeronautical authority is clearly identified in the designation; and |
(iii) |
the air carrier is owned, directly or through majority ownership, and it is effectively controlled by Member States and/or nationals of Member States, and/or by other States listed in Annex ΙΙΙ and/or nationals of such other States; and |
(iv) |
the air carrier has its principal place of business in the territory of the Member State which granted its valid Operating Licence. |
3. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan may refuse, revoke, suspend or limit the authorisations or permissions of an air carrier designated by a Member State where:
(i) |
the air carrier is not established in the territory of the designating Member State under the Treaty establishing the European Community or does not have a valid Operating Licence from a Member State in accordance with European Community law; or |
(ii) |
effective regulatory control of the air carrier is not exercised or not maintained by the Member State responsible for issuing its Air Operator’s Certificate, or the relevant aeronautical authority is not clearly identified in the designation; or |
(iii) |
the air carrier is not owned, directly or through majority ownership, or it is not effectively controlled by Member States and/or nationals of Member States, and/or by other States listed in Annex ΙΙΙ and/or nationals of such other States; or |
(iv) |
the air carrier does not have its principal place of business in the territory of the Member State which granted its valid Operating Licence; or |
(v) |
the air carrier is already authorised to operate under a bilateral agreement between the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and another Member State and that, by exercising traffic rights under this Agreement on a route that includes a point in that other Member State, it would be circumventing restrictions on the traffic rights imposed by that other agreement; or |
(vi) |
the air carrier designated holds an Air Operators Certificate and Operating Licence issued by a Member State with which the Islamic Republic of Pakistan does not have a bilateral air services agreement and that Member State has denied traffic rights or related commercial opportunities to a carrier licensed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. |
4. In exercising its right under this paragraph, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan shall not discriminate between Community air carriers on the grounds of nationality provided that it meets the above requirements.
Article 3
Safety
1. The provisions in paragraph 2 of this Article shall complement the corresponding provisions in the Articles listed in Annex ΙΙ(c).
2. Where a Member State has designated an air carrier whose regulatory control is exercised and maintained by another Member State, the rights of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan under the safety provisions of the agreement between the Member State that has designated the air carrier and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan shall apply equally in respect of the adoption, exercise or maintenance of safety standards by that other Member State and in respect of the operating authorisation of that air carrier.
Article 4
Tariffs for carriage within the European Community
1. The provisions in paragraph 2 of this Article shall complement the corresponding provisions in the Articles listed in Annex ΙΙ(d).
2. The tariffs to be charged by the air carrier(s) designated by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan under an agreement listed in Annex Ι containing a provision listed in Annex ΙΙ(d) for carriage wholly within the European Community shall be subject to European Community law. European Community law is applied on a non-discriminatory basis.
Article 5
Compatibility with competition rules
1. Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, nothing in each of the agreements listed in Annex Ι shall (i) favour the adoption of agreements between undertakings, decisions by associations of undertakings or concerted practices that prevent, distort or restrict competition; (ii) reinforce the effects of any such agreement, decision or concerted practice; or (iii) delegate to private economic operators the responsibility for taking measures that prevent, distort or restrict competition.
2. The provisions contained in the agreements listed in Annex Ι that are incompatible with paragraph 1 of this Article shall not be applied.
Article 6
Annexes to the Agreement
The Annexes to this Agreement shall form an integral part thereof.
Article 7
Revision or amendment
The Parties may, at any time, revise or amend this Agreement by mutual consent. Each of the Parties may, at any time, request consultations with a view to revise or amend this Agreement by mutual consent and the other party shall respond to such request not later than 60 (sixty) days after the request for consultations was made.
Article 8
Entry into force and provisional application
1. This Agreement shall enter into force when the Parties have notified each other in writing that their respective internal procedures necessary for its entry into force have been completed.
2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, the Parties agree to provisionally apply this Agreement from the first day of the month following the date on which the Parties have notified each other of the completion of the procedures necessary for this purpose.
3. Agreements and other arrangements between Member States and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan which, at the date of signature of this Agreement, have not yet entered into force and are not being applied provisionally are listed in Annex Ι(b). This Agreement shall apply to all such Agreements and arrangements upon their entry into force or provisional application.
Article 9
Termination
1. In the event that an agreement listed in Annex Ι is terminated, all provisions of this Agreement that relate to the agreement listed in Annex Ι concerned shall terminate at the same time.
2. In the event that all agreements listed in Annex Ι are terminated, this Agreement shall terminate at the same time.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorised, have signed this Agreement.
Done at Brussels in duplicate, on this twenty-fourth day of February in the year two thousand and nine in the Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish and Swedish languages.
За Европейската общност
Por la Comunidad Europea
Za Evropské společenství
For Det Europæiske Fællesskab
Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft
Euroopa Ühenduse nimel
Για την Ευρωπαϊκή Κοινότητα
For the European Community
Pour la Communauté européenne
Per la Comunità europea
Eiropas Kopienas vārdā
Europos bendrijos vardu
Az Európai Közösség részéről
Għall-Komunità Ewropea
Voor de Europese Gemeenschap
W imieniu Wspólnoty Europejskiej
Pela Comunidade Europeia
Pentru Comunitatea Europeană
Za Európske spoločenstvo
Za Evropsko skupnost
Euroopan yhteisön puolesta
För Europeiska gemenskapen
За Ислямска република Пакистан
Por la República Islámica de Pakistán
Za Pákistánskou islámskou republiku
For Den Islamiske Republik Pakistan
Für die Islamische Republik Pakistan
Pakistani Islamivabariigi nimel
Για την Ισλαμική Δημοκρατία του Πακιστάν
For the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Pour la République islamique du Pakistan
Per la Repubblica islamica del Pakistan
Pakistānas Islāma Republikas vārdā
Pakistano Islamo Respublikos vardu
A Pakisztáni Iszlám Köztársaság részéről
Għar-Repubblika Iżlamika tal-Pakistan
Voor de Islamitische Republiek Pakistan
W imieniu Islamskiej Republiki Pakistanu
Pela República Islâmica do Paquistão
Pentru Republica Islamică Pakistan
Za Pakistanskú islamskú republiku
Za Islamsko republiko Pakistan
Pakistanin islamilaisen tasavallan puolesta
För Islamiska republiken Pakistan
ANNEX Ι
Provisional list of agreements referred to in Article 1 of this Agreement
(a) |
Air service agreements between the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Member States of the European Community which, at the date of signature of this Agreement, have been concluded, signed and/or are being applied provisionally:
|
(b) |
Air service agreements and other arrangements initialled or signed between the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Member States of the European Community which, at the date of signature of this Agreement, have not yet entered into force and are not being applied provisionally:
|
ANNEX ΙΙ
Provisional list of articles in the agreements listed in Annex Ι and referred to in Articles 2 to 4 of this Agreement
(a) |
Designation by a Member State:
|
(b) |
Refusal, revocation, suspension or limitation of authorisations or permissions:
|
(c) |
Safety:
|
(d) |
Tariffs for Carriage within the European Community:
|
ANNEX ΙΙΙ
List of other States referred to in Article 2 of this Agreement
(a) |
The Republic of Iceland (under the Agreement on the European Economic Area); |
(b) |
The Principality of Liechtenstein (under the Agreement on the European Economic Area); |
(c) |
The Kingdom of Norway (under the Agreement on the European Economic Area); |
(d) |
The Swiss Confederation (under the Agreement between the European Community and the Swiss Confederation on Air Transport). |