Bulletin ISSN 0378-3693 of the European Communities Commission
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Bulletin ISSN 0378-3693 of the European Communities Commission No 12 1990 Volume23 The Bulletin of the European Communities reports on the activities of the Commission and the other Community institutions. lt is edited by the Secretariat-General of the Commission (rue de la Loi 200, B-1 049 Brussels) and published 11 times a year (one issue covers July and August) in the official Community languages. The following reference system is used: the first digit indicates the part number, the second digit the chapter number and the subsequent digit or digits the point number. Citations should therefore read as follows: Bull. EC 1-1987, point 1.1.3 or 2.2.36. Supplements to the Bulletin are published in a separate series at irregular intervals. They contain official Commission material (e.g. communications to the Council, programmes, reports and pro posals). © ECSC- EEC- EAEC, Brussels • Luxembourg, 1990 Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged. Printed in Belgium Bulletin of the European Communities Commission ECSC- EEC- EAEC Commission of the European Communities f Secretariat- General Brussels No 12 1990 Volume23 Sent to press in April 1991 Bulletin information service Readers can obtain information on developments since this issue went to press (date of adoption of instruments by the Council, of opinions given by Parliament or the Economic and Social Committee, of publication in the Official Journal, etc.) by telephoning the document services of the Information Offices at the following numbers: London 222 8122 Belfast 240708 Cardiff 371631 Edinburgh 225 2058 Dublin 712244 References in text and footnotes References to other parts of the same issue of the Bulletin are given in parentheses in text, thus (--+ point 2.1.53). Standardized abbreviations for the designation of certaan monetary units in the different languages of the Community: Ef_U European currency unit BFR Belg1sche frank I Franc beige OKR Oansk krone OM Oeutsche Mark OR Greek drachma ESC Escudo FF Franc fran~ais HFL Nederlandse gulden (Hollandse flonJn) IRL lnsh pound I punt LFR Franc luxembourgeo1s LIT L1ra 1tallana PTA Peseta UKL Pound sterlang USO Un1ted States dollar contents I - Rome European Council 7 ACTIVITIES IN DECEMBER 1990 1. Towards European Union 20 2. German unification 23 3. The single market and the Community economic and social area 26 - Economic and monetary policy 26 - Internal market 27 - Competition 40 - Social dimension 47 - Regional policies 52 - Research and technology 58 - Environment 65 - Consumers 70 - Enterprise policy and industrial strategies 71 - Agriculture 75 - Fisheries 89 - Transport 98 - Energy 104 - Information, communication and culture 105 - A people's Europe 107 4. Role of the Community in the world 111 - Relations with Central and Eastern European countries 111 - Relations with European Free Trade Association countries 114 - Mediterranean, Gulf and Arabian peninsula countries 114 -Asia 119 - Latin America 121 - ACP countries and OCTs 123 - General development cooperation 126 - Commercial policy 130 - International organizations and conferences 134 - Human rights in the world 136 5. Intergovernmental cooperation 138 - European political cooperation 138 - Other intergovernmental cooperation 140 6. Financing Community activities 141 - Budgets 141 - Financial operations 147 - European Investment Bank 147 7. Statistics 149 8. Community institutions 152 - Parliament 152 -Council 156 - Commission 163 - Community lawcourts 169 - Court of Auditors 184 - Economic and Social Committee 185 - ECSC Consultative Committee 186 DOCUMENTATION 1. The ecu 188 2. Meeting of Immigration Ministers 190 3. EC-EFTA ministerial meeting 191 4. Community-Rio Group Ministerial Conference 193 5. Infringement proceedings 198 6. Additional references in the Official Journal 207 7. Index 209 Supplements 1990 1 /90 Programme of the Commission for 1990 2/90 Community merger control law 3/90 Public procurement in the excluded sectors {11) 4/90 The European Community and German unification Supplements 1991 1 /91 Programme of the Commission for 1991 I - Rome European Council Rome, 14 and 15 December a major infrastructure network. It asked for every effort to be made to ensure that all 1.1. With the Italian Prime Minister, Mr the internal market measures embodied in Andreotti, in the chair, this meeting of the programme annexed to the Commission Heads of State or Government of the Mem communication were adopted in 1991. ber States was attended by Mr Delors, Presi dent, and Mr Andriessen, Vice-President, Regretting the delay in work in the free representing the Commission. It first heard movement of persons, the European a statement by Mr Baron Crespo, President Council asked that all the necessary of the European Parliament, on the situation decisions be taken under the Single Act, in the Community and Parliament's views particularly on the crossing of external bor on the questions to be discussed at the two ders. It took note of the recent reports on Intergovernmental Conferences. immigration, and invited the Council and the Commission to consider the most The European Council held an in-depth dis appropriate measures regarding assistance cussion on the Community's internal devel to countries of emigration. opment and on the contribution it plans to make towards shaping the new face of It then considered the situation regarding Europe. the social dimension and stressed the importance of pressing ahead more actively It expressed its determination to define the with application of the action programme stages in the process of transforming the for the implementation of the Social Community into a political union, which Charter. will act as a focus of stability in Europe. The European Council noted the consider It noted with satisfaction all the reparatory able importance attaching to the systematic work designed to serve as a basis for the and sustained strengthening of the action Intergovernmental Conference on Political taken by the Community to combat drugs. Union. It stressed the importance of the role played Without prejudice to other subjects raised by Celad and asked the Council to reach an by Governments or by the Commission in agreement on money laundering. the preparatory work, it asked the Confer The European Council then took general ence to give particular attention to demo stock of external relations questions. cratic legitimacy, common foreign and security policy, European citizenship, and In particular, it expressed the hope that the the extending and strengthening of Com forthcoming ministerial conference between munity action. the EEC and EFT A would enable decisive progress to be made, and welcomed the Moving on to the organization of the completion of work on the new Mediter Intergovernmental Conferences, the Euro ranean policy. pean Council confirmed that they should proceed in parallel and be concluded rapidly It called for closer political and economic and at the same time, so that the results links between the Community, the Rio could be submitted for simultaneous ratifi Group countries and the other countries of cation by the end of 1992 if possible. Latin America; it welcomed the accession of Namibia to the Lome IV Convention On the internal market, the European and called for a swift examination of the Council took note of the Commission's pro Commission paper on debt relief for the gress report, observing that the main fea ACP countries. tures of the European internal market were now in place. It called for rapid completion While regretting the developments in the of proceedings on VAT and excise duties, Uruguay Round negotiations, the European and welcomed the Commission proposal for Council stressed the need for a global Bull. EC 12-1990 7 Rome European Council approach based on balanced concessions. It The European Council noted that the asked all parties concerned to show the Council would release the second tranche political will needed to resolve these prob of ECU 260 million granted to Hungary to lems and called on the Commission to step support its balance of payments, together up its contacts in order to conclude a bal with Community support for Czechoslo anced agreement covering all sectors in the vakia's programme to stabilize and mod shortest possible time. ernize its economy and make its currency convertible. The European Council then considered the situation in the Middle East and adopted It approved emergency aid of ECU three declarations on the Gulf crisis, the 100 million for Romania and Bulgaria, and Middle East and the Lebanon. asked the Council to press ahead with examination of the Commission proposals It also adopted a declaration welcoming the on credit insurance for exports to Central initiatives taken to establish a united, non and Eastern Europe. racial and democratic South Africa. It recal led that sanctions could be relaxed as soon as the South African Government had taken measures to repeal the Group Areas Act and the Land Acts, and decided to lift the ban on Conclusions of the Presidency new investments forthwith. It also agreed to (Part 1) intensify the programme of positive meas ures to assist the victims of apartheid. 1.2. The European Council heard a statement by the President of the European Parliament on the There was also a general debate on relations situation in the Community and Parliament's views with the USSR and the countries of Central on the questions to be discussed at the two and Eastern Europe, upon which con Intergovernmental Conferences. clusions were adopted. 1.3. On the eve of the opening of the two Confer On the basis of guidelines set out in a report ences on EMU and Political Union and following prepared by the Commission as requested the recent CSCE meeting in Paris, the European by the Dublin European Council, and fol Council held an in-depth discussion on the Com lowing consultations with the IMF, the munity's internal development and on the contri World Bank, the EIB, the OECD and the bution it plans to make to shaping the new face President of the EBRD, the European of Europe.