Introductory text

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 207(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure^f1,

Whereas:

Council Regulation (EC) No 55/2008^f2 established a specific scheme of autonomous trade preferences for the Republic of Moldova. That scheme gives all products originating in the Republic of Moldova free access to the Union market, except for certain agricultural products listed in Annex I to that Regulation for which limited concessions have been granted either in the form of exemption from customs duties within the limit of tariff quotas or of reduction of customs duties.

In the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), the EU-Moldova ENP Action Plan and the Eastern Partnership, the Republic of Moldova has adopted an ambitious agenda for political association and further economic integration with the Union. The Republic of Moldova has also already made strong progress on regulatory approximation leading to convergence with Union laws and standards.

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^f3 (the Association Agreement), including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), was signed on 27 June 2014 and the provisional application was effective from 1 September 2014.

The specific scheme of autonomous trade preferences will continue to apply until 31 December 2015.

In order to support the efforts of the Republic of Moldova in accordance with the objectives set out in the ENP, the Eastern Partnership and the Association Agreement, and to provide an attractive and reliable market for its exports of fresh apples, fresh plums and fresh table grapes, further concessions should be made for the import of those products from the Republic of Moldova into the Union, on the basis of duty free tariff quotas.

It is also necessary to amend certain CN codes in the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 55/2008 in order to reflect the amendments introduced in Annex I to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87^f4 by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1001/2013^f5.

In order to allow the operators to benefit from those further concessions as soon as possible, this Regulation should enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

In view of the seasonal production peak of those products, it is appropriate to apply the further concessions from 1 August 2014.

Regulation (EC) No 55/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly,

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