Introductory text

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in particular Article 27(3) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (‘the High Representative’),

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament,

Having regard to the consent of the European Commission,

Whereas:

The purpose of this Decision is to establish the organisation and functioning of the European External Action Service (‘EEAS’), a functionally autonomous body of the Union under the authority of the High Representative, set up by Article 27(3) of the Treaty on European Union (‘TEU’), as amended by the Treaty of Lisbon. This Decision and, in particular, the reference to the term ‘High Representative’ will be interpreted in accordance with his/her different functions under Article 18 TEU.

In accordance with the second subparagraph of Article 21(3) TEU, the Union will ensure consistency between the different areas of its external action and between those areas and its other policies. The Council and the Commission, assisted by the High Representative, will ensure that consistency and will cooperate to that effect.

The EEAS will support the High Representative, who is also a Vice-President of the Commission and the President of the Foreign Affairs Council, in fulfilling his/her mandate to conduct the Common Foreign and Security Policy (‘CFSP’) of the Union and to ensure the consistency of the Union’s external action as outlined, notably, in Articles 18 and 27 TEU. The EEAS will support the High Representative in his/her capacity as President of the Foreign Affairs Council, without prejudice to the normal tasks of the General Secretariat of the Council. The EEAS will also support the High Representative in his/her capacity as Vice-President of the Commission, in respect of his/her responsibilities within the Commission for responsibilities incumbent on it in external relations, and in coordinating other aspects of the Union’s external action, without prejudice to the normal tasks of the Commission services.

In its contribution to the Union’s external cooperation programmes, the EEAS should seek to ensure that the programmes fulfil the objectives for external action as set out in Article 21 TUE, in particular in paragraph (2)(d) thereof, and that they respect the objectives of the Union’s development policy in line with Article 208 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’). In this context, the EEAS should also promote the fulfilment of the objectives of the European Consensus on Development^f1 and the European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid^f2.

It results from the Treaty of Lisbon that, in order to implement its provisions, the EEAS must be operational as soon as possible after the entry into force of that Treaty.

The European Parliament will fully play its role in the external action of the Union, including its functions of political control as provided for in Article 14(1) TEU, as well as in legislative and budgetary matters as laid down in the Treaties. Furthermore, in accordance with Article 36 TEU, the High Representative will regularly consult the European Parliament on the main aspects and the basic choices of the CFSP and will ensure that the views of the European Parliament are duly taken into consideration. The EEAS will assist the High Representative in this regard. Specific arrangements should be made with regard to access for Members of the European Parliament to classified documents and information in the area of CFSP. Until the adoption of such arrangements, existing provisions under the Interinstitutional Agreement of 20 November 2002 between the European Parliament and the Council concerning access by the European Parliament to sensitive information of the Council in the field of security and defence policy^f3 will apply.

The High Representative, or his/her representative, should exercise the responsibilities provided for by the respective acts founding the European Defence Agency^f4, the European Union Satellite Centre^f5, the European Union Institute for Security Studies^f6, and the European Security and Defence College^f7. The EEAS should provide those entities with the support currently provided by the General Secretariat of the Council.

Provisions should be adopted relating to the staff of the EEAS and their recruitment where such provisions are necessary to establish the organisation and functioning of the EEAS. In parallel, necessary amendments should be made, in accordance with Article 336 TFEU, to the Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Communities (‘Staff Regulations’) and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of those Communities^f8 (‘CEOS’) without prejudice to Article 298 TFEU. For matters relating to its staff, the EEAS should be treated as an institution within the meaning of the Staff Regulations and the CEOS. The High Representative will be the Appointing Authority, in relation both to officials subject to the Staff Regulations and agents subject to the CEOS. The number of officials and servants of the EEAS will be decided each year as part of the budgetary procedure and will be reflected in the establishment plan.

The staff of the EEAS should carry out their duties and conduct themselves solely with the interest of the Union in mind.

Recruitment should be based on merit whilst ensuring adequate geographical and gender balance. The staff of the EEAS should comprise a meaningful presence of nationals from all the Member States. The review foreseen for 2013 should also cover this issue, including, as appropriate, suggestions for additional specific measures to correct possible imbalances.

In accordance with Article 27(3) TEU, the EEAS will comprise officials from the General Secretariat of the Council and from the Commission, as well as personnel coming from the diplomatic services of the Member States. For that purpose, the relevant departments and functions in the General Secretariat of the Council and in the Commission will be transferred to the EEAS, together with officials and temporary agents occupying a post in such departments or functions. Before 1 July 2013, the EEAS will recruit exclusively officials originating from the General Secretariat of the Council and the Commission, as well as staff coming from the diplomatic services of the Member States. After that date, all officials and other servants of the European Union should be able to apply for vacant posts in the EEAS.

The EEAS may, in specific cases, have recourse to specialised seconded national experts (‘SNEs’), over whom the High Representative will have authority. SNEs in posts in the EEAS will not be counted in the one third of all EEAS staff at Administrator (‘AD’) level which staff from Member States should represent when the EEAS will have reached its full capacity. Their transfer in the phase of setting up of the EEAS will not be automatic and will be made with the consent of the authorities of the originating Member States. By the date of expiry of the contract of an SNE transferred to the EEAS under Article 7, the relevant function will be converted into a temporary agent post in cases where the function performed by the SNE corresponds to a function normally carried out by staff at AD level, provided that the necessary post is available under the establishment plan.

The Commission and the EEAS will agree on detailed arrangements relating to the issuing of instructions from the Commission to delegations. These should provide in particular that when the Commission will issue instructions to delegations, it will simultaneously provide a copy thereof to the Head of Delegation and to the EEAS central administration.

Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities^f9 (the ‘Financial Regulation’) should be amended in order to include the EEAS in Article 1 thereof, with a specific section in the Union budget. In accordance with the applicable rules, and as is the case for other institutions, a part of the annual report of the Court of Auditors will also be dedicated to the EEAS, and the EEAS will respond to such reports. The EEAS will be subject to the procedures regarding the discharge as provided for in Article 319 TFEU and in Articles 145 to 147 of the Financial Regulation. The High Representative will provide the European Parliament with all necessary support for the exercise of the European Parliament’s right as discharge authority. The implementation of the operational budget will be the Commission’s responsibility in accordance with Article 317 TFEU. Decisions having a financial impact will, in particular, comply with the responsibilities laid down in Title IV of the Financial Regulation, especially Articles 64 to 68 thereof regarding liability of financial actors, and Article 75 thereof regarding expenditure operations.

In addition, a number of additional posts for Member States’ temporary agents will be necessary, which will have to be financed within the framework of the current multiannual financial framework.

Rules should be laid down covering the activities of the EEAS and its staff as regards security, the protection of classified information, and transparency.

It is recalled that the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union will apply to the EEAS, its officials and other agents, who will be subject either to the Staff Regulations or the CEOS.

The European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community continue to be served by a single institutional framework. It is therefore essential to ensure consistency between the external relations of both, and to allow the Union Delegations to undertake the representation of the European Atomic Energy Community in third countries and at international organisations.

The High Representative should, by mid-2013, provide a review of the organisation and functioning of the EEAS, accompanied, if necessary, by proposals for a revision of this Decision. Such a revision should be adopted no later than the beginning of 2014,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: