Considerations on COM(2023)503 - EU position in the Association Committee in Trade configuration established by the Association Agreement with Moldova as regards the modification of Annex XXVIII-B (Rules applicable to telecommunication services) and Annex XXVIII-C (Rules applicable to postal and courier services) to that Agreement

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dossier COM(2023)503 - EU position in the Association Committee in Trade configuration established by the Association Agreement with Moldova as ...
document COM(2023)503 EN
date September 28, 2023
 
table>(1)The Association Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, and their Member States of the one part, and the Republic of Moldova, of the other part (1) (the ‘Agreement’) entered into force on 1 July 2016.
(2)Article 436(3) of the Agreement provides that the EU-Republic of Moldova Association Council (the ‘Association Council’) is to have the power to update or amend the Annexes to the Agreement.

(3)Pursuant to Article 438(2) of the Agreement, the Association Council may delegate to the Association Committee any of its powers, including the power to take binding decisions.

(4)By Decision No 3/2014 (2), the Association Council delegated the power to update or amend the Annexes to the Agreement which relate, inter alia, to Chapter 6 (Establishment, trade in services and electronic commerce) of Title V (Trade and Trade-related Matters) of the Agreement to the Association Committee in Trade configuration, to the extent that there are no specific provisions in Chapter 6 relating to the update or the amendment of those Annexes. There are no specific provisions in Chapter 6 relating to the update or the amendment of those Annexes.

(5)The Association Committee in Trade configuration should adopt a decision modifying Annex XXVIII-B (Rules applicable to telecommunication services) and Annex XXVIII-C (Rules applicable to postal and courier services) in the course of 2023.

(6)As stated in the preamble to the Agreement and in accordance with Articles 230 and 240 of the Agreement, the Union and the Republic of Moldova (‘Moldova’) recognise the importance of the approximation of Moldova’s existing legislation to that of the Union, meaning that Moldova is to ensure that its existing laws and future legislation will be gradually made compatible with the Union acquis. In addition, Article 102 of the Agreement provides that Moldova is to carry out approximation of its legislation to the EU acts and international instruments referred to in Annex XXVIII-B to the Agreement, according to the provisions of that Annex.

(7)Moldova has requested further integration with regard to the roaming sector in the Union, and to update the Agreement in order to include recent Union acquis on telecommunications and postal and courier services.

(8)Considering that Annex XXVIII-B (Rules applicable to telecommunication services) to the Agreement should be complemented by the relevant EU acts relating to roaming on public mobile communications networks, and other recent Union acquis relating to telecommunication services, it is necessary to add the relevant acts to that Annex. It is also necessary to delete certain acts already included in that Annex where they have been replaced or amended by more recent acts.

(9)Considering that Annex XXVIII-C (Rules applicable to postal and courier services) should be complemented by recent Union acquis relating to postal and courier services, it is necessary to add the relevant acts to that Annex.

(10)It is therefore appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union’s behalf within the Association Committee in Trade configuration, as the Decision modifying Annex XXVIII-B (Rules applicable to telecommunication services) and Annex XXVIII-C (Rules applicable to postal and courier services) to the Agreement will be binding upon the Union,