Regulation (EU) No 1202/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1215/2009 in relation to tariff quotas for wine
Regulation (EU) No 1202/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 20 November 2013amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1215/2009 in relation to tariff quotas for wineTHE 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 procedurePosition of the European Parliament of 22 October 2013 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 15 November 2013.,Whereas:(1)Since 2000, the Union has granted unlimited duty-free access to the Union market for almost all products originating in the Western Balkan countries. Currently, this system is provided for in Council Regulation (EC) No 1215/2009Council Regulation (EC) No 1215/2009 of 30 November 2009 introducing exceptional trade measures for countries and territories participating in or linked to the European Union's Stabilisation and Association process (OJ L 328, 15.12.2009, p. 1)..(2)All of the Western Balkan countries benefit from preferential trade arrangements, including individual tariff quotas, under the Stabilisation and Association Agreements or Interim Agreements on trade and trade-related matters concluded with those countries, with the exception of KosovoThis designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 (1999) and the ICJ opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence..(3)Regulation (EC) No 1215/2009 made available a global tariff quota of 50000 hl for wine, on a "first-come, first-served" basis to all the beneficiaries, subject to the exhaustion of their individual tariff quotas available under the Stabilisation and Association Agreements or Interim Agreements.(4)Stable access to the market of the Union is necessary for the socioeconomic development of Kosovo, which has demonstrated the capacity to export wine. In the absence of an individual tariff quota, Kosovan wine producers lack the necessary predictability for their exports.(5)It is appropriate to allocate an individual annual tariff quota of 20000 hl for wine exports from Kosovo to the Union, and to reduce proportionately the global annual tariff quota for wine available to all the beneficiaries from 50000 hl to 30000 hl.(6)The allocation of an individual tariff quota is achieved by closing the existing global tariff quota and opening two new ones, whose total volume is equivalent to the volume of the tariff quota closed.(7)It is also appropriate to introduce a mechanism which avoids legal uncertainties as regards the tariff quotas available on the date of entry into force of this Regulation, and to prevent the overall volume of the concession from exceeding 50000 hl.(8)As the total volume of the concessions is not modified, this Regulation does not affect the wine sector of the Union. The specific concessions provided for in the Stabilisation and Association Agreements or the Interim Agreements are also not affected by this Regulation.(9)This Regulation does not affect the obligations of the Union in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and does not need to receive a WTO waiver.(10)Regulation (EC) No 1215/2009 should therefore be amended accordingly,HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: