1992 Treaty Between Czech Republic and Slovak Republic on Mutual Relations and Principles of Cooperation in Agriculture, Food Industry, Forestry, and Water Economy under the Conditions of the Customs Union
Source: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/iwlri/Documents/Treaties/Basin%20Specific%20and%... downloaded on 20060529
The Czech Republic Government and the Slovak Republic Government (hereafter "the contracting parties"), represented by the Czech Republic Ministry of Agriculture and the Slovak Republic Land Management Ministry -guided by the wish to achieve the objectives and follow the principles of the Treaty on the Establishment of a Customs Union Between the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic dated 29 October 1992 (hereafter "Treaty on the Customs Union") and other treaties concluded between the contracting parties - determined to develop their relationship on the principle of mutuality in the interest of the harmonious development and prosperity of agriculture, food industry, forestry, and water economy of the contracting parties, have agreed on the following:
Part One - Economic Policy in Agriculture
Article 1
(1) Regarding third countries, the contracting parties shall exercise trade policy in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty on the Customs Union.
(2) In implementing the common trade policy in the framework of the Treaty on the Customs Union, the contracting parties pledge to respect and apply the following principles:
- a unified import and export licensing system;
- a unified system of non-tariff protection (unified system of compensatory payments).
(3) The partition of the quotas in the EC Association Agreement and in the bilateral EFTA agreements is an integral part of this treaty.
(4) The contracting parties will draft a joint procedure for renegotiation of treaties with the CIS member states.
Article 2
(1) The coordination of the agricultural policies of the contracting parties under Article 1 applies to export subsidies, tax policies, prices, subsidy policy, operations of the market regulation funds, and other market-organization tools.
(2) Agricultural policy coordination will consist of a mutual exchange of information, consultations, and a coordinated approach to matters of common interest. The coordinated approach may have a common and uniform character.
(3) The contracting parties shall inform each other promptly of prepared regulatory intervention in the market so that both contracting parties may thoroughly assess the situation with the objective of finding a solution acceptable to both parties.
(4) The economic policy tools used by the contracting parties in the framework of the coordinated approach must not hamper the attainment of the goals of the Treaty on the Customs Union.
Article 3
(1) The contracting parties will submit, after mutual consultations, a joint draft proposal on the assumption of the commitments accepted in the Uruguay Round.
(2) The contracting parties shall also cooperate in the transfer of the claims and commitments arising from the international treaties signed by the CSFR and the commitments resulting from its membership in international organizations wherever applicable. The contracting parties pledge to jointly meet the commitments that cannot be divided, or the partition of which would not be expedient.
(3) The contracting parties shall choose an approach facilitating the fast and smooth process of renegotiation in the EC within the framework of the EC Association Agreement and the bilateral EFTA countries agricultural agreements.
(4) The contracting parties shall honor without changes the Supplement to the Treaty on the CSFR-EFTA Trade regarding processed goods. They shall inform each other of potential changes to the schedule for the gradual removal of the non-agricultural portion of customs and shall submit a joint proposal to individual EFTA countries.
(5) In cooperation with the Federal Ministry of the Economy the contracting parties shall complete the talks on bilateral agreements of the so-called Visegrad Three. Subsequently, they shall choose the procedure as described in Article 3.
Part Two
Article 4
(1) The contracting parties pledge to exchange fundamental information concerning policies in agriculture, the food industry, forestry, and water economy.
(2) The contracting parties pledge to consult each other on changes to their laws and other legal regulations so they do not hamper the objectives of this treaty but lead to harmony between their legal codes and the code of the EC.
(3) The contracting parties will establish external working teams as needed to deal with the tasks arising from this treaty and a permanent working body at the standing secretariat of the Customs Union Council (Committee for Coordination of Economic Policies in Agriculture)
(4) In the event of a dispute or unilateral measure by one of the contracting parties, in accordance with Articles 36 and 37 of the Treaty on the Customs Union, the appropriate proposals and measures shall be assessed in the Committee for Coordination of Economic Policies in Agriculture prior to their submission to the Customs Union Council.
Article 5
(1) Mutual relations and cooperation between the contracting parties in the field of veterinary medicine or plant protection shall be regulated by a special treaty between the contracting parties. In the meantime, the practice shall be regulated by an agreement between the central agricultural institutes for inspection and testing, and the state veterinary administrations of the contracting parties. Similary, the appropriate bodies of the contracting parties shall conclude an agreement in the sphere of food inspection and state testing.
(2) Until a specific treaty is signed, the contracting parties shall implement in cooperation with the Interior and Environment Ministries joint measures concerning the administration and utilization of common or border bodies of water, and flood damage. They shall inform each other of measures implemented in extraordinary situations in the forests on their common border.
(3) The contracting parties consider beneficial their cooperation in cultivation of plants, the breeding of animals, testing, research, and education. The details shall be worked out in special treaties.
(4) The coordination of the operation of market regulation funds of the contracting parties shall be defined in a specific treaty.
(5) The land funds of the contracting parties shall conclude an agreement in the interest of reciprocal facilitation of settling from their land holdings certain property claims by citizens of the contracting parties.
Part Three - Interim and Closing Provisions
Article 6
(1) The contracting parties shall effectively cooperate through their Ministries of Agriculture in the preparation and implementation of measures resulting from the change in the constitutional arrangement of the CSFR. In the framework of a mutual agreement these ministries shall cooperate with the relevant bodies of the CSFR and the contracting parties in the transfer of the powers and operations of the CSFR in the area of registration, licensing and recognizing new hybrids and breeds, legislation and standardization, including food laws, the chief veterinary surgeon and chief plant protection officer, foreign trade and foreign relations, foreign aid, and science and research.
(2) The termination of the operation of the Federal Market Regulation Fund shall be controlled by the contracting parties through their representatives in its Council in accordance with the relevant Federal Assembly legal measure.
(3) The aforementioned ministries shall in the framework of their powers cooperate with the appropriate bodies in settling the issue of the property of the federal material reserves.
(4) The contracting parties shall jointly review the project proposed within the framework of the PHARE [Economic Reconstruction Aid for Poland and Hungary] program in 1992 as it pertains to agriculture in 1993. After consultations with EC guarantors, such an approach shall be adopted as allows for the smooth finalization of the final projects with the objective of rapidly drawing on the funds allocated by the EC for these projects.
(5) The allocation of property and other relevant issues in the implementation of sections (1) to (4) of this article shall be described according to the individual areas in specific protocols. The draft protocols shall be prepared in collaboration with the appropriate bodies and organizations of the CSFR and the contracting parties so as to be concluded to take effect on 1 January 1993.
Article 7
(1) This treaty remains in effect indefinitely and takes effect on 1 January 1993.
(2) The treaty becomes invalid on the day the Treaty on the Customs Union is abrogated.
Article 8
Set down in Bratislava on 23 November 1992 in two copies, each in the Czech and Slovak languages, both versions being equally authentic.
