CONTENTS
HEADS Introduction of signatories
TITLE1 Common Provisions
TITLE2 Provisions Amending the Treaty Establishing the European
Ecomonic Community with a View to Establishing the European
Community
TITLE3 Provisions Amending the Treaty Establishing the European
Coal and Steel Community
TITLE4 Provisions Amending the Treaty Establishing the European
Atomic Energy Community
TITLE5 Provisions on a Common Foreign & Security Policy
TITLE6 Provisions on Cooperation in the Fields of Justice & Home
Affairs
TITLE7 Final Provisions
PROTOCOLS Protocols (broken up into Protocols 1-5 and Protocols 6-17)
Final Act
May of 1992 Declaration on Protocol No. 17, made on the 1st May 1992
TITLE5
PROVISIONS ON A COMMON FOREIGN AND SECURITY POLICY
ARTICLE J
A common foreign and security policy is hereby established which
shall be governed by the following provisions.
ARTICLE J.1
- The union and its Member States shall define and implement a
common foreign and security policy, governed by the provisions of the
Title and covering all areas of foreign and security policy.
- The objectives of the common foreign and security policy shall be:
- to safeguard the common values, fundamental interests and
independence of the Union;
- to strengthen the security of the Union and its Member States in all
ways;
- to preserve peace and strengthen international security, in
accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter as well as
the principles of the Helsinki Final Act and the objectives of the Paris
Charter;
- to promote international co-operation;
- to develop and consolidate democracy and the rule of law, and
respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
- The Union shall pursue these objectives;
- by establishing systematic co-operation between Member States in
the conduct of policy, in accordance with Article J.2;
- by gradually implementing, in accordance with Article J.3, joint action
in the areas in which the Member States have important interests in
common.
- The Member States shall support the Union's external and security
policy actively and unreservedly in a spirit of loyalty and mutual
solidarity. They shall refrain from any action which is contrary to the
interests of the Union or likely to impair its effectiveness as a
cohesive force in international relations. The Council shall ensure that
these principles are complied with.
ARTICLE J.2
- Member States shall inform and consult one another within the
Council on any matter of foreign and security policy of general interest
in order to ensure that their combined influence is exerted as
effectively as possible by means of concerted and convergent action.
- Whenever it deems it necessary, the Council shall define a common
position.
Member States shall ensure that their national policies conform on the
common positions.
- Member States shall co-ordinate their action in international
organizations and at international conferences. They shall uphold the
common positions in such fora.
In international organizations and at international conferences where
not all the Member States participate, those which do take part shall
uphold the common positions.
ARTICLE J.3
The procedure for adopting joint action in matters covered by foreign
and security policy shall be the following:
1. The Council shall decide, on the basis of general guidelines from
the European Council, that a matter should be the subject of joint
action.
Whenever the Council decides on the principle of joint action, it shall
lay down the specific scope, the Union's general and specific
objectives in carrying out such action, if necessary its duration, and
the means, procedures and conditions for its implementation.
2. The Council shall, when adopting the joint action and at any stage
during its development, define those matters on which decisions are
to be taken by a qualified majority.
Where the Council is required to act by a qualified majority pursuant to
the preceding subparagraph, the votes of its members shall be
weighted in accordance with Article 148(2) of the Treaty establishing
the European Community, and for their adoption, acts of the Council
shall require at least fifty-four votes in favour, cast by at least eight
members.
3. If there is a change in circumstances having a substantial effect on
a question subject to joint action, the Council shall review the
principles and objectives of that action and take the necessary
decisions. As long as the Council has not acted, the joint action shall
stand.
4. Joint actions shall commit the Member States in the positions they
adopt and in the conduct of their activity.
5. Whenever there is any plan to adopt a national position or take
national action pursuant to a joint action, information shall be provided
in time to allow, if necessary, for prior consultations within the Council.
The obligation to provide prior information shall not apply to measures
which are merely a national transposition of Council decisions.
6. In cases of imperative need arising from changes in the situation
and failing a Council decision, Member States may take the necessary
measures as a matter of urgency having regard to the general
objectives of the joint action. The Member State concerned shall
inform the Council immediately of any such measures.
7. Should there be any major difficulties in implementing a joint action,
a Member State shall refer them to the Council which shall discuss
them and seek appropriate solutions. Such solutions shall not run
counter to the objectives of the joint action or impair its effectiveness.
ARTICLE J.4
- The common foreign and security policy shall include all questions
related to the security of the Union, including the eventual framing of a
common defence policy, which might in time lead to a common
defence.
- The union requests the Western European Union (WEU), which is an
integral part of the development of the Union, to elaborate and
implement decisions and actions of the Union which have defence
implications. The Council shall, in agreement with the institutions of
the WEU, adopt the necessary practical arrangements.
- Issues having defence implications dealt with under this Article
shall not be subject to the procedures set out in Article J.3.
- The policy of the Union in accordance with this Article shall not
prejudice the specific character of the security and defence policy of
certain Member States and shall respect the obligations of certain
Member States under the North Atlantic Treaty and be compatible with
the common security and defence policy established within that
framework.
- The provisions of this Article shall not prevent the development of
closer co-operation between two or more Member States on a bilateral
level, in the framework of the WEU and the Atlantic Alliance, provided
such co-operation does not run counter to or impede that provided for
in this Title.
- With a view to furthering the objective of this Treaty, and having in
view the date of 1998 in the context of Article XII of the Brussels
Treaty, the provisions of this Article may be revised as provided for in
Article N(2) on the basis of a report to be presented in 1996 by the
Council to the European Council, which shall include an evaluation of
the progress made and the experience gained until then.
ARTICLE J.5
- The Presidency shall represent the Union in matters coming within
the common foreign and security policy.
- The Presidency shall be responsible for the implementation of
common measures; in that capacity it shall in principle express the
position of the Union in international organizations and international
conferences.
- In the tasks referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, the presidency shall
be assisted if needs be by the previous and next Member States to
hold the Presidency. The Commission shall be fully associated in
these tasks.
- Without prejudice to Article J.2(3) and Article J.3(4), Member States
represented in international organizations or international conferences
where not all the Member States participate shall keep the latter
informed of any matter of common interest.
Member States which are also members of the United Nations Security
Council will concert and keep the other Member States fully informed.
Member States which are permanent members of the Security Council
will, in the execution of their functions, ensure the defence of the
positions and the interests of the union, without prejudice to their
responsibilities under the provisions of the United Nations Charter.
ARTICLE J.6
The diplomatic and consular missions of the Member States and the
Commission Delegations in third countries and international
conferences, and their representations to international organizations,
shall co-operate in ensuring that the common positions and common
measures adopted by the Council are complied with and implemented.
They shall step up co-operation by exchanging information, carrying
out joint assessments and contributing to the implementation of the
provisions referred to in Article 8c of the Treaty establishing the
European Community.
ARTICLE J.7
The Presidency shall consult the European Parliament on the main
aspects and the basic choices of the common foreign and security
policy and shall ensure that the views of the European Parliament are
duly taken into consideration. The European Parliament shall be kept
regularly informed by the Presidency and the Commission of the
development of the Union's foreign and security policy.
The European Parliament may ask questions of the Councils or make
recommendations to it. It shall hold an annual debate on progress in
implementing the common foreign and security policy.
ARTICLE J.8
- The European Council shall define the principles of and general
guidelines for the common foreign and security policy.
- The Council shall take the decisions necessary for defining and
implementing the common foreign and security policy on the basis of
the general guidelines adopted by the European Council. It shall
ensure the unity, consistency and effectiveness of action by the
Union.
The Council shall act unanimously, except for procedural questions
and in the case referred to in Article J.3(2).
- Any Member State or the Commission may refer to the Council any
question relating to the common foreign policy and may submit
proposals to the Council.
- In cases requiring a rapid decision, the Presidency, of its own
motion, or at the request of the Commission or a Member State, shall
convene an extraordinary Council meeting within forty-eight hours or,
in an emergency, within a shorter period.
- Without prejudice to Article 151 of the Treaty establishing the
European Community, a Political Committee consisting of Political
Directors shall monitor the international situation in the areas covered
by common foreign and security policy and contribute to the definition
of policies by delivering opinions to the Council at the request of the
Council or on its own initiative. It shall also monitor the
implementation of agreed policies, without prejudice to the
responsibility of the Presidency and the Commission.
ARTICLE J.9
The Commission shall be fully associated with the work carried out in
the common foreign and security policy field.
ARTICLE J.10
On the occasion of any review of the security provisions under Article
J.4, the Conference which is convened to that effect shall also
examine whether any other amendments need to be made to
provisions relating to the common foreign and security policy.
ARTICLE J.11
- The provisions referred to in Articles 137, 138, 139 to 142, 146, 147,
150 to 153, 157 to 163 and 217 of the Treaty establishing the
European Community shall apply to the provisions relating to the
areas referred to in this Title.
- Administrative expenditure which the provisions relating to the
areas referred to in this Title entail for the institutions shall be charged
to the budget of the European Communities.
The Council may also:
- either decide unanimously that operational expenditure to which the
implementation of those provisions gives rise is to be charged to the
budget of the European Communities; in that event, the budgetary
procedure laid down in the Treaty establishing the European
Community shall be applicable;
- or determine that such expenditure shall be charged to the Member
States, where appropriate in accordance with a scale to be decided.