Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2006)793 - Authorisation of Slovenia to ratify the Protocol of 12 February 2004 amending the Paris Convention of 29 July 1960 on Third-Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2006)793 - Authorisation of Slovenia to ratify the Protocol of 12 February 2004 amending the Paris Convention of 29 July 1960 on ... |
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| source | COM(2006)793  |
| date | 13-12-2006 |
By two Decisions, 2003/882/EC of 27 November 2003 and 2004/294/EC of 8 March 2004, The Council authorised the Member States which are Contracting Parties to the Paris Convention of 29 July 1960 on Third-Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy to sign and ratify, in the interest of the European Community, the Protocol amending that Convention, or to accede to it.
Those Decisions were necessary because the Protocol contains provisions which impact on the rules laid down in Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. The Community has exclusive competence in that field; the Member States retain their competence in matters covered by the Protocol which do not affect Community law.
The Paris Convention and its amending Protocol are not open to regional integration organisations so in this highly exceptional case there was felt to be justification for the Member States to ratify or accede to the Protocol in the interest of the Community.
The two decisions were addressed to the Member States which are Contracting Parties to the Paris Convention, to the express exclusion of Denmark, Austria, Ireland and Luxembourg. Denmark is in fact not bound by Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 nor subject to its application, in accordance with Articles 1 and 2 of the Protocol on the position of Denmark annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty establishing the European Community. In addition, Austria, Ireland and Luxembourg, which are not parties to the Paris Convention, have been expressly exempted from applying the decisions and will continue to be governed by the rules in Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 and to apply them in the field covered by the Paris Convention and its amending Protocol.
The Member States addressed by the above decisions signed the Protocol to that Convention in the interest of the European Community on 12 February 2004. Under Article 2 i of Decision 2004/294/EC they are to take the steps necessary to ratify the Protocol before 31 December 2006 if possible.
2. THE SITUATION FOLLOWING ENLARGEMENT
Article 53 of the Act concerning the conditions of accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic annexed to the Treaty of Accession signed on l6 April 2003 states that “upon accession, the new Member States shall be considered as being addressees of directives and decisions within the meaning of Article 249 of the EC Treaty and of Article 161 of the Euratom Treaty, provided that those directives and decisions have been addressed to all the present Member States.”
Council Decisions 2003/882/EC and 2004/294/EC authorising the signature and ratification of the Protocol to the Paris Convention were not addressed to “all the present Member States” within the meaning of Article 53 of the Act of Accession. As a result, the States which acceded to the European Union on 1 May 2004 are not bound by those Decisions, since they were not addressees within the meaning of Article 53 of the Act of Accession.
Moreover, the Decisions were not subject to technical adaptations before accession in accordance with Article 57 of that Act of Accession.
Of the new Member States only Slovenia is a Contracting Party to the Paris Convention; it signed the Protocol to the Convention on 12 February 2004.
The Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia are not Contracting Parties to the Paris Convention but are Parties to the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage of 21 May 1963 (the Vienna Convention).
Cyprus and Malta are not parties to any international convention on third-party liability in the nuclear field.
Bulgaria and Romania, about to accede to the Union, are also parties to the Vienna Convention.
3. IMPLEMENTATION OF DECISION 2004/294/EC
The Member States addressed by Decision 2004/294/EC are being contacted with a view to the simultaneous ratification of the Protocol in accordance with Article 2 i of that Decision.
It is desirable and in the spirit of Decision 2004/294/EC that Slovenia join the other Member States concerned in ratifying the Protocol. However, to that end Slovenia must be authorised to ratify the Protocol in the interest of the European Community just as the Member States referred to in that Decision are.
4. THIS DECISION
In the light of the above, the sole purpose of this Decision is to place Slovenia on an equal footing with the Member States addressed by Decision 2004/294/EC.
As a result, this Decision is without prejudice to:
- the position of the other Member States which are Parties to the Vienna Convention;
- the position of the other Member States which are not Parties to any convention on third-party liability in the nuclear field;
- the Commission’s right of initiative on third-party liability in the nuclear field based on the Euratom Treaty.