Council Decision (EU) 2019/485 of 5 March 2019 on the conclusion of the relevant Agreements under Article XXI of the General Agreement on Trade in Services with Argentina Australia Brazil Canada China the Separate customs territory of Taiwan Penghu Kinmen and Matsu (Chinese Taipei) Colombia Cuba Ecuador Hong Kong China India Japan Korea New Zealand the Philippines Switzerland and the United States on the necessary compensatory adjustments resulting from the accession of Czechia Estonia Cyprus Latvia Lithuania Hungary Malta Austria Poland Slovenia Slovakia Finland and Sweden to the European Union

Ce que fait l'acte

to approve the conclusion of the relevant agreements under Article XXI GATS with Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the Separate customs territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu (Chinese Taipei), Columbia, Cuba, Ecuador, Hong Kong China, India, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, the Philippines, Switzerland, and the United States, on the necessary compensatory adjustments resulting from the accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Austria, Poland, Slovenia, the Slovak Republic, Finland and Sweden to the European Union. ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: Council may adopt the act only if Parliament has given its consent to the act. CONTENT: the present Commission proposal for a Council decision aims at formally concluding the compensatory agreements reached between the European Union and several WTO Members in order to obtain a consolidated GATS schedule of specific commitments covering all the Member States who were members of the European Union in 2006. The terms and conditions under which WTO Members commit access to their market to the services and service suppliers of other WTO Members are specified in their GATS schedules of specific commitments. The original schedule of specific commitments of the European Union and its Member States (‘the EU GATS schedule’) dates back to 1994, and only covers those twelve Member States who were members of the European Union at that time. PURPOSE: to enable the conclusion of the compensation adjustments put in place by the European Union with several members of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in order to obtain a consolidated GATS schedule of specific commitments covering all Member States that were members of the Union in 2006. BACKGROUND: p ursuant to Article XX of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), WTO Members set out in a schedule the specific commitments they undertake under Part III of GATS. The current schedule of the Union and its Member States only covers the specific commitments related to the twelve Member States of 1994. The individual schedules of specific commitments of the Member States that joined the Union in 1995 and in 2004 (‘the acceding Member States’) were adopted prior to their accession. In order to ensure that the acceding Member States are covered by limitations included in the list of specific commitments of the Union and to ensure consistency with the acquis communautaire, it is necessary to modify or withdraw certain specific commitments included in the list of specific commitments of the Union and in the lists of specific commitments of the acceding Member States. The Commission conducted negotiations with the affected WTO Members. As a result of those negotiations, an agreement was reached on compensatory adjustments related to the modifications and withdrawals notified on 28 May 2004. Following the conclusion of the negotiations, the Commission was authorised to sign the respective Agreements with each of the affected WTO Members concerned. With a view to launching the certification procedure provided for by the applicable WTO rules, on 14 September 2006, the Commission transmitted the draft…