(1)

Regulation (EC) No 3223/94 lays down, pursuant to the outcome of the Uruguay Round multilateral trade negotiations, the criteria whereby the Commission fixes the standard values for imports from third countries, in respect of the products and periods stipulated in the Annex thereto.

(2)

In compliance with the above criteria, the standard import values must be fixed at the levels set out in the Annex to this Regulation,

(1)

The representative prices and additional duties applicable to imports of white sugar, raw sugar and certain syrups for the 2006/2007 marketing year are fixed by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1002/2006 (3). These prices and duties have been last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 582/2007 (4).

(2)

The data currently available to the Commission indicate that the said amounts should be changed in accordance with the rules and procedures laid down in Regulation (EC) No 951/2006,

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1445/95 of 26 June 1995 on rules of application for import and export licences in the beef and veal sector and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 2377/80 (2) sets out the conditions for the operation of the system of import and export licences in the beef and veal sector.

(2)

Exports in the beef and veal sector have been declining steadily since 2000. Applications for licences for exports with or without refund have been used, inter alia, for monitoring Community exports. In current circumstances, for the purposes of good management, it is still essential to monitor the trend with respect to licence applications for exports with refund. On the other hand, it is no longer necessary to monitor exports without refund. Therefore, in the interests of simplification, the obligation to present an export certificate should be limited to exports for which a refund is claimed.

(3)

Following the most recent amendment to Commission Regulation (EEC) 2973/79 of 21 December 1979 laying down detailed rules for the application of granting of assistance for the export of beef and veal products which may benefit from a special import treatment in a third country (3), the annual quota of 5 000 tonnes of fresh, chilled or frozen beef for export to the United States of America is no longer divided into three-month periods. The current terms and conditions for applying for and issuing export licences should therefore be adapted to this new situation.

(4)

In order to be consistent, the terms and conditions for applying for and issuing export licences for beef and veal products which may benefit from a special import treatment in Canada should also be adapted.

(5)

Member States shall notify to the Commission, once a week, on Monday by 13.00, licence applications lodged by operators during the preceding week. In order to be consistent with the rules in force in other meat sectors, in the case of beef and veal Member States should be required to notify licence applications lodged by operators from Monday to Friday in any given week on the Friday afternoon of that week.

(6)

Regulation (EC) No 1445/95 should be amended accordingly.

(7)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Beef and Veal,

1.

Article 7 is replaced by the following:

2.

Article 7a is deleted.

3.

Article 8(2) is deleted.

4.

Article 9(2) is deleted.

5.

Article 12 is amended as follows:

6.

Article 12a is amended as follows:

7.

Article 13(1) and (2) are replaced by the following:

8.

Annex IV is replaced by the Annex to this Regulation.

(1)

Under Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999, private storage aid may be granted for long-keeping cheeses and for cheeses which are manufactured from sheep’s and/or goat’s milk and require at least six months for maturing, if for those cheeses price developments and the stock situation indicate a serious imbalance of the market which may be eliminated or reduced by seasonal storage.

(2)

The seasonal nature of the production of certain long-keeping cheeses and Pecorino Romano, Kefalotyri and Kasseri cheese is aggravated by the fact that the seasonality of consumption is the inverse of the seasonality of production. The fragmented production of such cheeses further aggravates the consequences of that seasonality. Therefore, provision should be made for recourse to seasonal storage in respect of a quantity corresponding to the difference between summer and winter production.

(3)

The types of cheeses eligible for aid and the maximum quantities which may qualify for it should be laid down, as well as the duration of the contracts in relation to the real requirements of the market and the keeping qualities of the cheeses in question.

(4)

It is necessary to specify the terms of the storage contract and the essential measures to enable the cheese covered by a contract to be identified and subjected to checks. The amount of aid should be fixed taking into account the storage costs and the balance to be maintained between cheeses qualifying for the aid and other cheeses marketed. In view of these elements, and of the available resources, the total amount of aid should not be changed.

(5)

Detailed rules should also be laid down regarding documentation, accounting and the frequency and nature of checks. In this connection, it should be laid down that the Member States may charge the costs of checks fully or in part to the contractor.

(6)

It should be clarified that only whole cheeses are eligible for the private storage aid.

(7)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Milk and Milk Products,

(a)

‘storage lot’ means a quantity of cheese weighing at least two tonnes, of the same type and taken into storage in a single storage depot on a single day;

(b)

‘day of commencement of contractual storage’ means the day following that of entry into storage;

(c)

‘last day of contractual storage’ means the day before that of removal from storage;

(d)

‘storage period’ means the period during which the cheese can be covered by the private storage scheme, as specified for each type of cheese in the Annex.

(1)

Article 6(1) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 2659/94 (2) lays down the amounts of private storage aid for Grana padano, Parmigiano-Reggiano and Provolone cheeses. In view of the financial resources available, the development in storage costs and the market price forecasts, need to be reflected in the total amount of aid. At the same time it does not seem appropriate to differentiate the component of the aid.

(2)

Regulation (EC) No 2659/94 should be amended accordingly.

(3)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Milk and Milk products,

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1555/96 of 30 July 1996 on rules of application for additional import duties on fruit and vegetables (2) provides for surveillance of imports of the products listed in the Annex thereto. That surveillance is to be carried out in accordance with the rules laid down in Article 308d of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 of 2 July 1993 laying down provisions for the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 establishing the Community Customs Code (3).

(2)

For the purposes of Article 5(4) of the Agreement on Agriculture (4) concluded during the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations and in the light of the latest data available for 2004, 2005 and 2006, the trigger levels for additional duties on tomatoes, apricots, lemons, plums, peaches, including nectarines, pears and table grapes.

(3)

As a result, Regulation (EC) No 1555/96 should be amended.

(4)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Fresh Fruit and Vegetables,

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 134/2007 (3) fixes the indicative quantities for which system B export licences may be issued.

(2)

In the light of the information available to the Commission today, there is a risk that the indicative quantities laid down for the current export period for tomatoes will shortly be exceeded. This overrun will prejudice the proper working of the export refund scheme in the fruit and vegetables sector.

(3)

To avoid this situation, applications for system B licences for tomatoes after 30 May 2007 should be rejected until the end of the current export period,

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1484/95 (4), fixes detailed rules for implementing the system of additional import duties and fixes representative prices in the poultrymeat and egg sectors and for egg albumin.

(2)

It results from regular monitoring of the information providing the basis for the verification of the import prices in the poultrymeat and egg sectors and for egg albumin that the representative prices for imports of certain products should be amended taking into account variations of prices according to origin. Therefore, representative prices should be published.

(3)

It is necessary to apply this amendment as soon as possible, given the situation on the market.

(4)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Poultrymeat and Eggs,

(1)

Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on nutrition and health claims made on foods (2) shall apply from 1 July 2007. It shall apply to foods intended for use in energy-restricted diets for weight reduction but without prejudice to the specific rules of Commission Directive 96/8/EC of 26 February 1996 on foods intended for use in energy-restricted diets for weight reduction (3).

(2)

Directive 96/8/EC provides that the labelling, advertising and presentation of the products covered by that Directive shall not make any reference to the rate or amount of weight loss which may result from their use or to a reduction in the sense of hunger or an increase in the sense of satiety.

(3)

Article 13(1)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 allows the use on foods of health claims describing or referring in particular to a reduction in the sense of hunger or an increase in the sense of satiety under specified conditions.

(4)

Allowing claims referring to a reduction in the sense of hunger or an increase in the sense of satiety under the condition that such claims are based on generally accepted scientific evidence and are well understood by the average consumer reflects the evolution in the range and properties of products.

(5)

This reasoning is all the more relevant to products for use in energy-restricted diets for weight reduction. Therefore the use of such claims should no longer be prohibited provided that the conditions laid down in Article 13, paragraph 1 of Regulation 1924/2006/EC are fulfilled.

(6)

The measures provided for in this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

(1)

Under Directive 2000/29/EC, where a Member State considers that there is a danger of introduction into or spread within its territory of a harmful organism not listed in Annexes I or II to that Directive, it may temporarily take any additional measures necessary to protect itself from that danger.

(2)

As a result of the presence of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) (the specified organism) in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, Spain informed the Commission and the other Member States on 27 June 2006 that, on 6 June 2006, it had adopted additional official measures to prevent the further introduction into and spread within its territory of that specified organism.

(3)

Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) is not listed in Annexes I or II to Directive 2000/29/EC. However, a report of a pest-risk assessment based on the limited scientific information available has demonstrated that this specified organism causes severe tree damage including significant mortality on specific plant species, belonging to the Palmae family and restricted to plant sizes with a diameter of the stem at the base of over 5 cm (susceptible plants). The susceptible plants are present in many parts of Europe, mainly in the south where they are planted in large numbers for ornamental purposes and where they are of high environmental importance.

(4)

It is therefore necessary to take emergency measures against the introduction into and spread within the Community of the specified organism.

(5)

Those emergency measures should apply to the introduction and the spread of the specified organism, the demarcation of areas in the Community where the specified organism is present, the import, production, movement and control of susceptible plants in the Community. A survey to check for the presence or continued absence of the specified organism should be carried out on all plants of Palmae in the Member States to collect more scientific information about the susceptibility of plants.

(6)

It is appropriate that the results of the measures be reviewed by 31 March 2008 taking into account the experiences from the first growing season under the emergency measures.

(7)

Member States should, if necessary, adapt their legislation in order to comply with this Decision.

(8)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plant Health,

(a)

‘specified organism’ means Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier);

(b)

‘susceptible plants’ means plants, other than fruit and seeds, having a diameter of the stem at the base of over 5 cm of Areca catechu, Arenga pinnata, Borassus flabellifer, Calamus merillii, Caryota maxima, Caryota cumingii, Cocos nucifera, Corypha gebanga, Corypha elata, Elaeis guineensis, Livistona decipiens, Metroxylon sagu, Oreodoxa regia, Phoenix canariensis, Phoenix dactylifera, Phoenix theophrasti, Phoenix sylvestris, Sabal umbraculifera, Trachycarpus fortunei and Washingtonia spp.;

(c)

‘place of production’ means the place of production as defined in the FAO International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures No 5 (2).

(a)

they comply with the specific import requirements in point 1 of Annex I;

(b)

they are, on entry into the Community, inspected by the responsible official body for the presence of the specified organism, in accordance with Article 13a(1) of Directive 2000/29/EC, and no signs of the specified organism have been found.

(1)

Article 8(2) of Directive 91/414/EEC provides that a Member State may, during a period of 12 years following the notification of that Directive, authorise the placing on the market of plant protection products containing active substances not listed in Annex I of that Directive that are already on the market two years after the date of notification, while those substances are gradually being examined within the framework of a programme of work.

(2)

Commission Regulations (EC) No 451/2000 (2) and (EC) No 703/2001 (3) lay down the detailed rules for the implementation of the second stage of the programme of work referred to in Article 8(2) of Directive 91/414/EEC and establish a list of active substances to be assessed with a view to their possible inclusion in Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC. That list includes thiodicarb.

(3)

For thiodicarb the effects on human health and the environment have been assessed in accordance with the provisions laid down in Regulations (EC) No 451/2000 and (EC) No 703/2001 for a range of uses proposed by the notifier. Moreover, those Regulations designate the rapporteur Member States which have to submit the relevant assessment reports and recommendations to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in accordance with Article 8(1) of Regulation (EC) No 451/2000. For thiodicarb the rapporteur Member State was the United Kingdom and all relevant information was submitted on 19 January 2004.

(4)

The assessment report has been peer reviewed by the Member States and the EFSA within its Working Group Evaluation and presented to the Commission on 14 December 2005 in the format of the EFSA conclusion regarding the peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance thiodicarb (4). This report has been reviewed by the Member States and the Commission within the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health and finalised on 14 July 2006 in the format of the Commission review report for thiodicarb.

(5)

During the evaluation of this active substance, a number of concerns were identified. The risk assessment for insecticidal use indicated an acute dietary risk for toddlers resulting from the consumption of treated table grapes and for adults resulting from the consumption of wine. Furthermore, the risk assessment for use of thiodicarb as a molluscicide has shown important data gaps, in particular as regards the operator exposure and possible groundwater contamination, and so it was not possible to conclude on the basis of the information available that thiodicarb met the criteria for inclusion in Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC.

(6)

The Commission invited the notifier to submit its comments on the results of the peer review and on its intention or not to further support the substance. The notifier submitted its comments which have been carefully examined. However, despite the arguments put forward by the notifier, the concerns identified could not be eliminated, and assessments made on the basis of the information submitted and evaluated during the EFSA expert meetings have not demonstrated that it may be expected that, under the proposed conditions of use, plant protection products containing thiodicarb satisfy in general the requirements laid down in Article 5(1)(a) and (b) of Directive 91/414/EEC.

(7)

Thiodicarb should therefore not be included in Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC.

(8)

Measures should be taken to ensure that authorisations granted for plant protection products containing thiodicarb are withdrawn within a fixed period of time and are not renewed and that no new authorisations for such products are granted.

(9)

Any period of grace granted by a Member State for the disposal, storage, placing on the market and use of existing stocks of plant protection products containing thiodicarb, should be limited to 12 months in order to allow existing stocks to be used in one further growing season.

(10)

This Decision does not prejudice any action the Commission may undertake at a later stage for this active substance within the framework of Council Directive 79/117/EEC of 21 December 1978 prohibiting the placing on the market and use of plant protection products containing certain active substances (5).

(11)

This Decision does not prejudice the submission of an application for thiodicarb according to the provisions of Article 6(2) of Directive 91/414/EEC in view of a possible inclusion in its Annex I.

(12)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

(a)

authorisations for plant protection products containing thiodicarb are withdrawn by 25 November 2007;

(b)

no authorisations for plant protection products containing thiodicarb are granted or renewed from the date of publication of this Decision.

(1)

Bluetongue is a disease transmitted by insect vectors Culicoïdes spp. It a trans-boundaries disease and individual national efforts are not sufficient for effective surveillance and control. An integrated approach at Community level is required to analyze both regional and global distribution of the bluetongue infection as well as of the competent Culicoïdes vectors. Therefore, the gathering and exchange of epidemiological information on bluetongue in the Member States is of fundamental importance to establish the appropriate measures for controlling the disease in this population and verifying their efficacy.

(2)

The implementation of a Community surveillance network would enable an effective risk analysis on a Community scale and also a reduction of some of the costs that spare national systems would imply.

(3)

In this context, the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) enhances data analysis capabilities and facilitates the understanding of disease dynamics and spread.

(4)

The Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise ‘G. Caporale’, Teramo Italy, that is a World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) Collaborating Center for Veterinary Training, Epidemiology, Food Safety and Animal Welfare is in the process of establishing a web-based GIS to collect, store, and analyse bluetongue surveillance data (BlueTongue NETwork application). This system can be shared with other Member States and third countries in order to verify its validity as a tool to control the disease and better understand disease dynamics and spread.

(5)

A financial contribution should be granted for that project, as it may contribute to the development of Community legislation on bluetongue and eventually to better control the disease.

(6)

Under Council Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005 of 21 June 2005 on the financing of the common agricultural policy (2), veterinary measures are to be financed under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund. For financial control purposes, Articles 9, 36 and 37 of that Regulation are to apply

(7)

The payment of the financial contribution from the Community must be subject to the condition that the actions planned have actually been carried out and that the authorities supply all the necessary information.

(8)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

(1)

On 16 November 2005, the Council agreed on the Joint Declaration ‘Committing to a new EU Afghan Partnership’ which stated the commitment of the European Union (EU) and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (the Government of Afghanistan) ‘to a secure, stable, free, prosperous and democratic Afghanistan as laid out in the Afghan Constitution adopted on 4 January 2004 (14 Dalwa 1383). Both parties wish to see Afghanistan play a full and active role in the international community and are committed to building a prosperous future free from the threats of terrorism, extremism and organised crime’.

(2)

On 31 January 2006, the Afghanistan Compact (London) was launched. This Agreement affirmed the commitment of the Government of Afghanistan and the international community and established an effective mechanism for coordinating Afghan and international efforts over the next five years to work towards conditions where the Afghan people can live in peace and security under the rule of law, with good governance and human rights protection for all, and can enjoy sustainable economic and social development.

(3)

The Afghanistan Compact supports the Afghan Government's interim National Development Strategy (i-ANDS) which lays out their vision and investment priorities. The i-ANDS reflects a process of national consultation, underpinning the benchmarks in the Afghanistan Compact and the targets set in Afghanistan's Millennium Development Goals.

(4)

On 13 October 2006 the Joint EU Assessment Mission report was presented to the Political and Security Committee (PSC), containing an analysis of the situation of the rule of law in Afghanistan as well as recommendations for a way forward to strengthen the EU's contribution to the sector in Afghanistan and to make a strategic impact. The Joint Assessment Mission report recommended, inter alia, that the EU could consider contributing further to support the police sector through a police mission, and that a fact finding mission could be sent to Afghanistan in order to explore further the feasibility of such a mission.

(5)

A fact-finding mission was sent to Afghanistan between 27 November and 14 December 2006. Following on from its conclusions of 11 December 2006, on 12 February 2007, the Council approved the Crisis Management Concept (CMC) for an EU police mission to Afghanistan in the field of policing with linkages to the wider rule of law and agreed that the mission would provide added value. The mission will work towards an Afghan police force in local ownership, that respects human rights and operates within the framework of the rule of law. The mission should build on current efforts, and follow a comprehensive and strategic approach, in line with the CMC. In doing so, the mission should address issues of police reform at central, regional and provincial levels.

(6)

On 23 March 2007, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1746 (2007) on the extension of UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan's (UNAMA) mandate, which, inter alia, welcomes the decision by the EU to establish a police mission in the field of policing with linkages to the wider rule of law and counter-narcotics, to assist and enhance current efforts in the area of police reform at central and provincial levels, and looks forward to the early launch of the mission.

(7)

On 23 April 2007, the Council approved the Concept of Operations (CONOPS) for an EU police mission to Afghanistan (EUPOL AFGHANISTAN) with linkages to the wider rule of law.

(8)

In a letter of invitation of 16 May 2007 the Government of Afghanistan invited the EU to launch an EU police mission to Afghanistan.

(9)

The EU police mission will be set in the wider context of the international community's effort to support the Government of Afghanistan in taking responsibility for strengthening the rule of law, and in particular, in improving its civil police and law enforcement capacity. Close coordination between the EU police mission and other international actors involved in security assistance, including the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), as well as those providing support to police and rule of law reform in Afghanistan, will be ensured.

(10)

As stated in the CONOPS, and given the need for a tangible EU commitment to police reform, and the linkage to the objectives of the Afghanistan Compact, the envisaged minimum time frame of the mission shall be three years. Owing to the unpredictability of the situation and to the need to ensure a flexible approach, and in accordance with the assessment criteria set out in the CONOPS and in the OPLAN, the size and scope of the Mission should be subject to a six-monthly review.

(11)

The mandate of the Mission will be implemented in the context of a situation which may deteriorate and could harm the objectives of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) as set out in Article 11 of the Treaty,