1. The forty-third meeting of the EEA Council took place in Brussels on 18 May 2015 under the Presidency of Ms Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, Parliamentary State Secretary for EU Affairs of Latvia, representing the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The meeting was attended by Mr Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, Mr Vidar Helgesen, Minister of EEA and EU Affairs at the Office of the Prime Minister of Norway, and Ms Aurelia Frick, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Liechtenstein, as well as by Members of the Council of the European Union and representatives of the European Commission and the European External Action Service.
2. The EEA Council noted that, within the
framework of the Political Dialogue, the Ministers would discuss 1) Ukraine and Russia; 2) the Eastern Partnership and 3)Syria, Iraq, Libya and ISIL-
Da'esh, including combating radicalization and extremist violence in Europe.
An orientation debate was held on the Digital
Agenda.
3.
The EEA Council welcomed that the conclusions on a homogenous extended single
market and EU relations with Non-EU Western European countries adopted by the
Council of the EU in December 2014 acknowledged the key role played by the EEA
Agreement throughout the last 20 years in advancing economic relations and
internal market integration between the EU and the EEA EFTA States. The EEA
Council highlighted that the Agreement had been robust and capable of adapting
to changes in EU treaties and EU enlargements. The EEA Council recognised that
the good functioning and further development of this extended Single Market
would be a key driver for renewed growth in Europe.
4.
The EEA Council emphasised the need for responsibility and solidarity among the
countries of Europe to overcome the social and economic challenges that had
arisen from the economic crisis. In particular, the EEA Council expressed
concern regarding the continued high level of youth unemployment in some EEA
Member States.
5.
Emphasising the fact that greater knowledge of the EEA Agreement throughout the
EEA would be in the interest of all Contracting Parties, the EEA Council urged
them to ensure that the appropriate information on the EEA Agreement was made
readily and easily available to all.
6.
The EEA Council noted that free movement of capital is a fundamental internal
market freedom and an integral part of the EEA acquis and acknowledged that
restrictions can be implemented only temporarily on the basis of the provisions
of Article 43 of the EEA Agreement.
7.
Noting the Progress Report of the EEA Joint Committee, the EEA Council
expressed its appreciation for the work of the Joint Committee in ensuring the
continued successful operation and good functioning of the EEA Agreement.
8.
The EEA Council stressed the need to swiftly conclude the work necessary for
the incorporation into the EEA Agreement of the EU Regulations on the European
Supervisory Authorities in the area of financial services to ensure effective
and homogenous supervision throughout the EEA, as called for in the Conclusions
approved by the EU and EFTA Ministers of Finance and Economy at their informal
meeting of 14 October 2014. The EEA Council also highlighted the high importance
of a swift incorporation and application of the outstanding legislation in the
field of financial services in order to ensure a level playing field throughout
the EEA in this important economic sector.
9.
Acknowledging the contribution made by EU programmes to building a more
competitive, innovative and social Europe, the EEA Council welcomed the
participation of the EEA EFTA States in EEA-relevant programmes to which they
contribute financially.
10. The EEA
Council recognised the still existing need to alleviate social and economic
disparities in the EEA, as well as the positive contribution of the EEA and
Norway Financial Mechanisms 2009-2014 and their predecessors in reducing
economic and social disparities throughout the EEA. It noted that more than one
year after the launch of the negotiations on the renewal of the EEA and Norway
Financial Mechanisms for another term, the negotiations were still on-going and
the progress achieved was still mixed. In light of the delay incurred, the EEA
Council called for increased efforts in view of a swift conclusion of these
negotiations.
11. The EEA
Council also took note of the on-going negotiations in parallel with the
Financial Mechanism negotiations on bilateral issues between each of the EEA
EFTA States and the EU, and also called for a swift conclusion of these
negotiations.
12. The EEA
Council welcomed the ongoing efforts made to both reduce the number of
EEA-relevant EU acts awaiting incorporation into the EEA Agreement and to
accelerate the incorporation process. While commending all the steps undertaken
in the course of the last years, the EEA Council noted that the number of acts
awaiting incorporation was still too high. The EEA Council called for continued
work in order to significantly and durably reduce the current backlog and
thereby ensure legal certainty and homogeneity in the EEA. It urged all parties
to engage constructively to find solutions to pending difficult issues.
13. The EEA
Council noted that progress was still needed on a number of outstanding issues
and looked forward to reach a conclusion as soon as possible in particular
regarding the Third Postal Directive, the 2009 TELECOM Package (including the
Regulation on the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications -
BEREC), the Directive on Deposit Guarantee Schemes, the Regulation on Novel
Foods and Novel Food Ingredients, the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the
Regulation on Medicinal Products for Paediatric use and the EU legal acts in
the area of organic production.
14. The EEA
Council recalled that there was still a number of Joint Committee Decisions,
for which the six-month deadline provided for in the EEA Agreement with regard
to constitutional clearance had been exceeded. It encouraged the EEA EFTA
States to strengthen their efforts to resolve the pending cases as soon as
possible and to avoid such delays in the future.
15. With
regard to the Third Package for the Internal Energy Market, the EEA Council underlined
the importance of stepping up efforts to incorporate this legislative Package
into the EEA Agreement in order to establish a fully functional internal market
for energy, and in particular encouraged the parties to identify mutually
acceptable solutions for appropriate EEA EFTA participation in the Agency for
the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER).
16. The EEA
Council placed great importance on continued close cooperation between the EU
and the EEA EFTA States in environment, energy and climate change polices,
particularly in light of the 2030 Framework for Climate and Energy and the
proposal for A Framework Strategy for a Resilient Energy Union with a
Forward-Looking Climate Change Policy. The EEA Council underlined in particular
the importance of the EU, its Member States and the EEA EFTA States working
closely together to achieve an ambitious and universal climate agreement during
the COP21 Conference in Paris in December 2015 in order to contain global
warming within the limit of 2ºC. The close cooperation should also continue in
particular in the areas of security of energy supply, emissions trading,
promotion of competitive, climate resilient, safe and sustainable low carbon
energy, energy efficiency, renewable energy resources, carbon capture,
utilisation and storage (CCUS), marine environment and other environmental
issues such as waste, chemicals, water resource management and industrial
pollution.
17. The EEA
Council acknowledged the significance of the negotiations on a Transatlantic
Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the European Union and the
United States. The EEA Council welcomed the exchange of information between the
European Commission and the EEA EFTA States initiated in the EEA Joint
Committee in December 2014. Bearing in mind inter alia Protocol 12 to the EEA
Agreement, the EEA Council encouraged a continuation of this exchange of
information.
18. The EEA
Council acknowledged that the Contracting Parties, pursuant to Article 19 of
the EEA Agreement, had undertaken to continue their efforts with a view to
achieving the progressive liberalisation of agricultural trade. The EEA Council
welcomed the launch in 2012 of negotiations on the further liberalisation of
agricultural trade and on the protection of geographical indications between
the EU and Iceland. The EEA Council also welcomed the launch of negotiations
between the EU and Norway in November 2013 on the protection of geographical
indications and on further liberalisation of agricultural trade within the
framework of Article 19 in February 2015. The EEA Council noted that the EU had
expressed its disappointment on the fact that the increased Norwegian customs
duties for certain agricultural products, and the reclassification of
hortensia, had not been revoked and that the EU had again encouraged Norway to
reverse these measures.
19. The EEA
Council welcomed the dialogue between Iceland and the EU on the review of the
trade regime for processed agricultural products within the framework of
Article 2(2) and Article 6 of Protocol 3 to the EEA Agreement in order to
further promote trade in processed agricultural products and looked forward to
the conclusion of this dialogue in the near future. The EEA Council encouraged
the Contracting Parties to continue the dialogue on the review of the trade
regime for processed agricultural products within the framework of Article 2(2)
and Article 6 of Protocol 3 to the EEA Agreement in order to further promote
trade in this area.
20. The EEA
Council underlined the importance of continuing the practice of inviting
officials from the EEA EFTA States to political dialogues held at the level of
the relevant Council working parties.
21. The EEA
Council underlined the importance of inviting EEA EFTA Ministers to informal EU
ministerial meetings and ministerial conferences relevant to EEA EFTA
participation in the Internal Market, and expressed its appreciation to the
current Latvian and incoming Luxembourg Presidencies for the continuation of this
practice.
22. The EEA
Council recognised the positive contributions made by the EEA EFTA States to
the decision-shaping process of EEA-relevant EU legislation and programmes
through their participation in the relevant committees, expert groups and agencies,
as well as through the submission of EEA EFTA Comments.
23. The EEA Council noted the Resolutions
of the EEA Joint Parliamentary Committee adopted at its meeting in Strasbourg
on 17 December 2014 on Follow-up
to the Climate and Energy Policy Framework 2030 and on the Annual Report of the EEA Joint
Committee on the Functioning of the EEA Agreement in 2013, and the
Resolutions of the EEA Joint Parliamentary Committee adopted on 31 March 2015
on The Transatlantic Trade and
Investment Partnership and its possible implications for the EEA EFTA States -
Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway and
on Industrial Policy in
Europe.
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