Proposal for a Council Decision on the signing and provisional application, on behalf of the Union, of a Protocol to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and Georgia, of the other part, on a Framework Agreement between the European Union and Georgia, on the general principles for the participation of Georgia in Union programmes

As part of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), the gradual opening-up of certain Union programmes and agencies to the participation of ENP partner countries represents one of many measures to promote reform, modernisation and transition in the European Union’s neighbourhood. The Commission outlined this policy aspect more extensively in its Communication of December 2006 "on the general approach to enable European Neighbourhood Policy partner countries to participate in Community agencies and Community programmes".

The Council endorsed this approach in conclusions on 5 March 2007. Based upon this Communication and those conclusions, the Council, on 18 June 2007, issued directives to the Commission to negotiate Framework Agreements with Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Georgia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Moldova, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority, Tunisia and Ukraine, on the general principles for their participation in Community programmes.

In September 2011, the participants of the Eastern Partnership’s Warsaw Summit agreed to facilitate participation by partner countries in EU programmes and agencies. To date, Protocols have been signed with Armenia, Israel, Jordan, Moldov, Morocco and Ukraine.

In December 2012, Georgia expressed its interest to participate in the broad range of programmes open to partner countries of the ENP. The text of the Protocol negotiated with Georgia is attached.

The Commission herewith submits a proposal for a Council Decision on the signing of the Protocol. This Protocol contains a Framework Agreement on the general principles for the participation of Georgia in Union programmes. It contains standard stipulations that are intended to be applied to all ENP partner countries with whom such protocols are to be concluded. The negotiated text also foresees that the Parties shall provisionally apply the provisions of this Protocol from the date of its signature.

In parallel, the Commission submits a proposal for a Council Decision on the conclusion of the said Protocol.

• Primary Source

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)536: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2013:536:FIN

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)537: Proposal for a Council Decision on the conclusion of a Protocol to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and Georgia of the other part, on a Framework Agreement between the European Union and Georgia on the general principles for the participation of Georgia in Union programmes http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2013:537:FIN

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)537: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2013:537:FIN

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