EU ministers set out customs cooperation priorities with Eastern Neighbours

05-12-2011

EU ministers meeting in the Competitiveness (Internal Market, Industry, Research and Space) Council today have reiterated the EU’s commitment to step up customs cooperation with its Eastern Neighbours in the frameworks of The European Neighbourhood Policy, the Eastern Partnership and the EU-Russia Partnership forModernisation.

The Council Conclusions make reference to the priorities of customs cooperation, as set out earlier this year at the High Level Seminars in Budapest and in Cracow (in April and October respectively).

The Conclusions invite the European Commission and Member States to cooperate with the Eastern Neighbouring countries with a view to:
• Develop safe and fluid trade lanes, in particular by helping partner countries to get ready for the extension ofthe Common Transit Convention and the Convention on the simplification offormalities in trade in goods.
• Promote risk management and the fight against fraud, in particular through cooperation in developing and improving risk management systems and methods of risk analysis, as well as in developing exchanges of information on a sound legal basis to facilitate trade andstrengthen risk management.
• Foster customs modernisation, in particular by assisting partner countries in capacity building and convergence of customs legislation and procedures
• Explore the possible use of available assistance mechanisms for these purposes, such as Twinning and other assistance projects,Programmes for regional and trans-border cooperation and EU Border Assistance Mission.
• Seek to prepare and adopt the Strategic Frameworks as instruments to strengthen the customscooperation with Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
• Continue the dialogue between the EU and Eastern neighbouring countries by setting upregular dedicated customs fora. (ENPI Info Centre)