Considerations on COM(2019)204 - Accession of Solomon Islands to the Interim Partnership Agreement with the Pacific States

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dossier COM(2019)204 - Accession of Solomon Islands to the Interim Partnership Agreement with the Pacific States.
document COM(2019)204 EN
date February 17, 2020
 
table>(1)On 12 June 2002, the Council authorised the Commission to open negotiations for Economic Partnership Agreements with the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States.
(2)The Interim Partnership Agreement between the European Community, of the one part, and the Pacific States, of the other part (2) (the ‘Interim Partnership Agreement’), which establishes a framework for an Economic Partnership Agreement, was signed in London on 30 July 2009. The Interim Partnership Agreement has been provisionally applied by Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa since 20 December 2009, 28 July 2014 and 31 December 2018, respectively.

(3)Article 80 of the Interim Partnership Agreement lays down the provisions regarding the accession of other Pacific Island States.

(4)On 4 June 2018, Solomon Islands submitted an accession request together with a market access offer to the Council.

(5)The Commission has assessed Solomon Islands’ offer and, after amendments, found it acceptable. Accordingly, the Commission concluded negotiations with Solomon Islands on 23 October 2018.

(6)In accordance with Article 76(3) of the Interim Partnership Agreement, the Union and Solomon Islands are to provisionally apply the Interim Partnership Agreement 10 days after notifying each other in writing of the completion of the procedures necessary for that purpose.

(7)The accession of Solomon Islands to the Interim Partnership Agreement should be approved on behalf of the Union, subject to Solomon Islands’ deposit of the act of accession pursuant to Article 80(2) thereof,