Agreement between the European Community and the Pacific States

SUMMARY OF:

Interim Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Pacific States

Decision 2009/729/EC on the signature and provisional application of the Interim Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Pacific States

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE AGREEMENT AND THE DECISION?

The aims of the agreement are to:

enable the Pacific States to benefit from the improved market access offered by the EU under the basis of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations and, at the same time, avoid trade disruption between Pacific States and the EU due to the expiry of the trade preferences granted under the Cotonou Agreement on 31 December 2007, pending the conclusion of a comprehensive EPA between the 2 parties;
promote sustainable development and the gradual integration of Pacific States into the world economy, in line with their political choices and development priorities;
establish a free trade area between the parties based on the common interest, and fulfil this aim by progressively liberalising trade in line with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and the principle of asymmetry, with the EU taking into account the specific needs and capacity constraints of the Pacific States, in terms of levels and timing for commitments under the agreement;
set up appropriate dispute settlement arrangements;
set up appropriate institutional arrangements.

The decision concludes the agreement on behalf of the European Community (now EU).

KEY POINTS

The Pacific States are 15 independent countries in the Pacific region (Cook Islands, Timor-Leste, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu).

The agreement is based on the fundamental principles and elements set out in Articles 2 and 9 of the Cotonou Agreement. It is divided into 5 parts:

1.
Trade partnership for sustainable development
- The parties reaffirm that the aim of sustainable development shall be an integral part of the agreement, in line with the overarching aims and principles set out in Articles 1, 2 and 9 of the Cotonou Agreement, with commitment to take into account the human, cultural, economic, social, health and environmental best interests of their respective populations and of future generations.
- Decision-taking methods are based o the fundamental principles of ownership, participation and dialogue.
- The agreement builds upon and aims at deepening regional integration.
- The parties will cooperate in international fora on issues relevant to the agreement.
2.
Trade in goods
The agreement applies to products originating in the EU or in the Pacific States which fall under specific tariff headings.
It covers:
- customs duties;
- trade defence instruments e.g. anti-dumping measures, safeguards;
- non-tariff measures (prohibition of quantitative restrictions, national treatment on internal taxation and regulation, agricultural export subsidies);
- customs and trade facilitation (customs and administrative cooperation, customs procedures, relation of customs with the business community, customs valuation, harmonisation of customs standards at regional level);
- technical barriers to trade and sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures;
- exceptions, e.g. security, taxation, balance of payment difficulties, human, animal or plant life or health, food security, etc.
3.
Dispute avoidance and settlement
The agreement aims to avoid and settle disputes between the parties in order to arrive at a mutually agreed solution.
It covers:
- consultation and mediation;
- dispute settlement procedures;
- general articles, including the relation with the WTO obligations.
4.
Institutional provisions
The agreement sets up a Trade Committee, made up of representatives of both parties, which deals with the implementation of the agreement, including:
- the setting up of its own rules of procedures;
- the delegation of specific powers to the Special Committees (e.g. Special Committee on Customs Cooperation and Rules of Origin).
5.
General and final provisions
These include definitions and provisions on:
- coordinators and exchange of information;
- regional preference;
- relations with the Cotonou Agreement, the WTO Agreement and other international Agreements;
- revision;
- the procedures for the continuation of negotiations and the accession to the agreement, etc.

DATE OF ENTRY INTO FORCE

The agreement is not yet in force.
It has applied provisionally between the EU and Papua New Guinea since 20 December 2009.
It has applied provisionally between the EU and Fiji since 28 July 2014.
It has applied provisionally between the EU and Samoa since 31 December 2018.
It has applied provisionally between the EU and Solomon Islands since 17 May 2020.

BACKGROUND

Tonga has begun the procedure to accede to this agreement.
This agreement is one of a number of EPAs that the EU aims to conclude with African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.
Pacific (European Commission)
Economic partnership (European Commission).

MAIN DOCUMENTS

Interim Partnership Agreement between the European Community, of the one part, and the Pacific States, of the other part (OJ L 272, 16.10.2009, pp. 2-715)

Council Decision 2009/729/EC of 13 July 2009 on the signature and provisional application of the Interim Partnership Agreement between the European Community, of the one part, and the Pacific States, of the other part (OJ L 272, 16.10.2009, p. 1)