Regulation (EU) No 374/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on the reduction or elimination of customs duties on goods originating in Ukraine

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,

Whereas:

Ukraine is a priority partner country within the European Neighbourhood Policy and the Eastern Partnership. The Union has been seeking an increasingly close relationship with Ukraine going beyond mere bilateral cooperation, encompassing gradual progress towards political association and economic integration. In this respect, an Association Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and Ukraine, of the other part (‘the Association Agreement’) was negotiated in 2007-2011, including a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), and was initialed by both parties on 30 March 2012. Pursuant to the provisions of the DCFTA, the Union and Ukraine are to establish a free trade area over a transitional period of a maximum of 10 years, starting from the entry into force of the Association Agreement, in accordance with Article XXIV of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994.

In view of the unprecedented security, political and economic challenges faced by Ukraine, and in order to support its economy, it is appropriate not to await the entry into force of the Association Agreement's provisions on DCFTA, but to anticipate its implementation by means of autonomous trade preferences and to start unilaterally the reduction or elimination of Union customs duties on goods originating in Ukraine, in accordance with the Schedule of concessions set out in Annex IA to the Association Agreement.

In order to prevent any risk of fraud, the entitlement to benefit from autonomous trade preferences should be conditional on compliance by Ukraine with the relevant rules of origin of products and the procedures related thereto, as well as on its involvement in effective administrative cooperation with the Union. Moreover, Ukraine should abstain from introducing new duties or charges having equivalent effect or new quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect for imports originating in the Union, or from increasing existing levels of duties or charges or from introducing any other restrictions.

It is necessary to provide for the reintroduction of normal Common Customs Tariff duties for any products which cause, or threaten to cause, serious difficulties to Union producers of like or directly competing products, subject to an investigation by the Commission.

In the event of failure to comply with any of the conditions laid down in this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to suspend temporarily in whole or in part the preferential arrangements. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council^f1.

This Regulation is to be applied until Title IV (trade and trade-related matters) of the Association Agreement enters into force or, where appropriate, is applied provisionally, and until 1 November 2014 at the latest.

In view of the urgency of the matter, it is important to apply an exception to the eight-week period referred to in Article 4 of Protocol No 1 on the role of national Parliaments in the European Union, annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

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