Bulletln of the EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
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tssN 0378-3693 B.BBHAMV Bulletln OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES Commission No 4 1979 Volume 12 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 eleven times a year (one issue covers July and August) in the official Community languages and Spanish. Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged. 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 1-1979, point 1.1 .3 or 2.2.36. Supplements to the Bulletin are published in a separate serles al irregular intervals. They contain official Commission material (e.g. communicalions to the Council, programmes, reporfs and proposals). The Supplements do not appear in Spanish. Printed in Belgium BULLETIN OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES European Coal and Steel Community European Economic Community European Atomic Energy Community Commission of the European Communities Secretariat-General Brussels \ \ No4 1 979 S€nt to press ln May 1979. Volume 12 contents PART ONE PET$Ifl!, 1. Greece: Completion of the accession negotiations-A ten- memberCommunityfor 1 January 1981 Tokyo Round: Oulcome of the multilateral negotiations-Overall results. Negotiated agreements ready for initlalling The Community and the European Conventlon on Human Rights Memorandum -Commission Competition policy: 1978 Beport{ommission action on com- petition 18 PART TWO il'X,'ITI"",, 1. Building the Community 24 - Economic and monetary policy 24 - lntemal market and industrial affairs 25 - Customs union 29 - @mpetition 29 - Employment and social policy 32 - Environment and consumer protection 35 Agriculture 39 - /f3 - Fisheries - Transport 45 - Energy 47 Researctr and development, sdence and education tf8 - Sdentific and technical informatlon and lnlormation manage- - ment 5n 2. Enlargement and extemal relations 54 - Accession negotiations 54 - Bilateral relations with applicant countries il - Commercial policy 55 - Development policy 58 - Lawofthesea 62 - lnternational organizations 62 - Relations with certain countries and regions 64 - Political cooperation 69 3. lnstitutional and political maners 70 - Institutional developments - European policy 70 - lnstitutions and organs of the Communities 71 r Parliament 71 ' Council 86 ' Commission 88 ' CourtofJustCourt of Justice 89 t Courtllar rr{ ofaf AuditorsAr rd 95 ' Economic and Social Committee 95 t European lnvestment Bank t01 - Financing Community actlvltles 104 PART THREE DOCUi'ENTATION 1. Units of account 110 2. Additional references in the Official Journal t14 3. lnfringemsntpro@dures t18 Publications of the European Communitles Supplements 1979 lng European Union - Annual reports lor 1978 2n9 Accession of the Communities to the European Conventlon on Human Rights - Commission memorandum PART ONE SPECIAL FEATURES \ Standardized abbreviations for the dosignation ot certain monetary units in the difterent languages of the Community: BFR = Belgische frank/Franc b€19€ LFR : Frarrc luxembourgeois DKR : Dansk krone FF : Frarrc frar4ais DM : Deutsche Mark LIT : Lira italiana HFL : Nederlandse gulden (Hollandso floriin) UKL : Pound sterling IRL = lrish pound USD : Unit€d Statos dollar 1. Greece: Completion of the accession negotiations Accession of Greece tl A ten-member Community made on transitional measures, agriculture for 1 January 1981 and social policy.' The ministerial conference on 3 April lasted under an hour, but it had been preceded by 1,1.1. On 1 Januaray 1981 Greece will extensive coordination between the Member become the Community's tenth Member States, and a considerable amount of prepa- State. At a ministerial level conference held in ration on the part of the Greek delegation Luxembourg on 3 April, the accession negoti- and the Community. Mr Natali, Vice- ations came to an end with agreement being President, and Commission staff were given reached on the outstanding issues. The acces- special responsibiliry for working out solu- sion treaty can now be signed shortly; the tions, with figures, to budgetay problems. date chosen is 28 May, and the signing is to The ministerial meeting was followed on 5 take place in Athens. April by a meeting at deputy level, as agreed by the ministers, the aim of which was to clarify a number of points and finalize certain The result of over two-and-a-half texts, without in any way going back on the yeirs of negotiations results of the ministerial meeting. 1.1.2. The 3 April meeting constituted the culmination of a process which started on 12 Progress on all fronts January 1975, when Greece presented its application for membership.' In its Opinion, 1.1.3. The main issues outstanding, which meetings of 3 and 5 adopted on 28 January 1976,2 the Commis- were resolved during the sion recommended that the Community give April, concerned budgetary matters, certain a 'clear positive' answer to this request, and social affairs questions, and the Community's that accession negotiations accordingly be external commitments. opened. On 9 February 1976 the Council Vith regard to budgetary matters and appli- gave its approval, and negotiations got under cation of the own resources system, Greece's way on 27 July 19763 in Brussels, opening GNPA/AT budget contributions will be reim- with a ministerial conference at which the bursed in part over a five-year transitional parties agreed that the negotiations should period on a sliding scale (70% the first year, proceed on the basis of Greece's acceptance and 50%, 30o/o,20"/o and 10% respectively of the acquis communautaire, subiect to the thereafter). In addition, the measures agreed necessary transitional adjustments. on in December for cotton, figs and raisins take effect in the first marketing year fol- Eleven ministerial-level sessions and twenty- will accession. was also four at deputy level (ambassadors) were lowing the date of It required before the negotiations could be concluded. Of particular importance was the tenth ' Bull. EC 6-1975, points 1201 to 1212. ' Bull. EC l-1976, points 1101 to 1111 and Supple- ministerial session, which took place in Brus- ment 2/75-Bull. EC. sels on 20 December 7978, as it enabled very ' Bull. EC718-1976, points 1201 to 1205. substantial, indeed decisive progress to be ' Bull. EC 12-1978, points 1.2.1 to 1.2.3. Bull. EC 4-1979 2. Tokyo round: Outcome of the multilateral Accesslon of Greece negotiations decided to bring forward the first aligment of Overall results. Negotiated aid for olive-oil production from 1 November agreements ready for initialling 1981 (the start of the first marketing year after accession) to 1 January of that year (the second alignment will still take place at the beginning of the second marketing year). 1.2.1. Further progress was made on 12 April in Geneva towards the liberalization of On the basis of a hypothetical 1979 budget, international trade, when the texts of the this would mean that Greece would be a net agreements laboriously negotiated over the beneficiary to the tune of about 80 million last six years were made available for initial- EUA in its first year of membership. ling (by the delegations which were able to The final problems remaining in the field of do so). These texts will then have to be ratified social affairs have now been resolved. Mem- by each of the signatories. bers of the family of a Greek worker The multilateral trade negotiations (MTN) in employed in another Member State will be Geneva-which kicked off with the GATT job entitled to hold a in that Member State (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) after an individuai waiting p.rioJ of itir.J Ministerial Conference in September 1973 in years up to I January 1984 and eighteen Tokyot-have been the most important to months up to 1 January 1986, after which date. there will be no more restrictions on them.' Greek workers employed in another Com- As early as December 19712 the Community munity country will also be entitled, three had expressed its political determination to years after accession, to the same family undertake far-reaching trade negotiations allowances, in respect of children residing in with its paftners in GATT (this was reaf- Greece, as other Community workers. firmed at the Paris Summit in October 19723) and the Community's move was backed by At a press conference given on 4 April, Mr certain other industrialized countries (United Natali expressed satisfaction with the terms States and The recent negotiations of the agreement, which he described as Japan). went further than the six malor tariff confer- equitable, and stressed that the arrangements ences organized under GATT since the Gen- for Greece's accession marked the beginning eral Agreement was signed in 1947.' of a Community that pays greater aftention to its Mediterranean dimension. Not only was the number of participants appreciably higher-because -haue many develop- ing countries now gained-independ-' ence- but also-and this is important-the Tokyo Round has yielded results which go beyond the limited field of tariffs. ' Bull. EC 9-1973, points 1101 to 1105. ' Supplement 273 - Bull. EC, point 4. ' Bull. EC 10-1972, Chapter I: final declaration (exter- nal relations). ' Bull. EC 12-1978, point 1.2.3. ' Bull. EC9-1973, points 1102 and 1103. 8 Bull. EC 4-1979 Tokyo Round Tokyo Round The final package of negotiated agreements since the middle ol 1977.' Following these of course includes cuts in industrial and meetings, on 17 January 1978 the Council agricultural tariffs; but besides this appreci- adopted a position on the attitude to be taken able reduction in tariff barriers, the MTN by the Community in this new phase of have strengthened the GATT rules by draw- negotiations; the Council specified the for- ing up a series of 'codes' in non-tariff fields, mulas or working hypotheses on which the notably standards, customs valuation, public Nine were ready to negotiate.r An unofficial contracts, subsidies and countervailing duties, meeting of delegations-including the three and anti-dumping duties.