The Commission is submitting an amended proposal for a Council decision approving the conclusion of the Protocol amending the ancillary Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the first part, Iceland, of the second part, and the Kingdom of Norway, of the third part, on the application of the Air Transport Agreement between the United States of America, of the first part, the European Union and its Member States, of the second part, Iceland, of the third part, and the Kingdom of Norway, of the fourth part, signed on 16 and 21 June 2011, to take account of the accession to the European Union of the Republic of Croatia.

As a reminder, on 14 November 2019, the Commission presented a proposal for a Council Decision, based on Article 218(6)(a) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 6(2), second subparagraph, of the Act of Accession, approving the conclusion of a Protocol amending the Ancillary Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway on the application of the Air Transport Agreement between the United States of America and the parties to the Ancillary Agreement, to take account of the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union.

The end of the transition period for the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union on 31 December 2020 required amendments to the protocol in order to remove from it the references to the United Kingdom. The Commission has therefore negotiated with Iceland and Norway the necessary amendments to that effect. The delegations representing the parties have agreed on the amendments.

It is furthermore necessary to amend Article 2 of the proposed Council decision in order to ensure compliance with the attribution of powers among the institutions under the Treaties, and in particular the Commission’s prerogative under Article 17 of the Treaty on European Union to represent the Union externally.

Document attached to the procedure

PURPOSE: to conclude the Protocol amending the Ancillary Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the first part, Iceland, of the second part, and the Kingdom of Norway, of the third part, on the application of the Air Transport Agreement between the United States of America, of the first part, the European Union and its Member States, of the second part, Iceland, of the third part, and the Kingdom of Norway, of the fourth part, signed on 16 and 21 June 2011, to take account of the accession to the European Union of the Republic of Croatia.

PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.

ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: Council may adopt the act only if Parliament has given its consent to the act.

BACKGROUND: under the Act of Accession, Croatia has undertaken to accede to the agreements concluded or signed by the Union and the Member States with third countries.

Among those agreements is the Ancillary Agreement between the Union and its Member States, Iceland and Norway (“the Ancillary Agreement”) on the application of the Air Transport Agreement between the United States of America, the Union and its Member States, Iceland and Norway (“the Four Part Agreement”), which governs the relationship among the three European parties under that agreement. The Four Part Agreement in turn extends the scope of the Air Transport Agreement between the United States and the European Community and its Member States (“the EU-US ATA”) to Iceland and Norway.

The Commission has accordingly negotiated a protocol amending the Ancillary Agreement to provide for the accession of Croatia to that agreement.

CONTENT: the aim of this proposal is to obtain a Council decision on the conclusion of the Protocol on behalf of the Union and the Member States, subsequent to its signing.

The Protocol consists of a provision on the accession of Croatia to the Ancillary Agreement and provisions on the entry into force and provisional application of the protocol.

The EU-US ATA was the first comprehensive air transport agreement with a key aviation partner of the Union. It is the most important air transport agreement in the world, providing more than 80 million seats per year, and as such a cornerstone of the EU’s external aviation policy. Its importance has increased by its extension to Iceland and Norway through the Four Part Agreement.

The Protocol will allow Croatia to benefit from the Four Part Agreement, creates equal and uniform conditions for market access and serves as a basis for new arrangements for regulatory co-operation and convergence in fields essential for the safe, secure, and efficient operation of air services. These arrangements can only be achieved at Union level.

Preparatory document