20071122

Council Common Position 2007/762/CFSP

of 22 November 2007

on participation by the European Union in the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organisation (KEDO)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in particular Article 15 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) On the basis of Council Common Position 2001/869/CFSP of 6 December 2001 on participation by the European Union in the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organisation (KEDO) [1], the European Union has participated in the KEDO, in order to contribute to finding an overall solution to the issue of nuclear non-proliferation in the Korean Peninsula.

(2) On the basis of Council Common Position 2006/244/CFSP of 20 March 2006 on participation by the European Union in the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organisation (KEDO) [2], the European Union has participated in the process to terminate the light water reactor project and to wind up KEDO in an orderly manner.

(3) The EU Strategy against Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction, adopted by the European Council on 12 December 2003, attaches particular importance to compliance by all parties with the provisions of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

(4) The Executive Board of KEDO decided in May 2007 that KEDO's future activities would be limited to defending its financial and legal interests in an orderly winding up process, to be implemented as soon as possible.

(5) There is consensus amongst members of the Executive Board of KEDO to continue cooperation with the objective of implementing the termination of the light water reactor project and an orderly winding-up of KEDO.

(6) To that end, the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) has negotiated the renewal of its membership of KEDO with the specific purpose of supporting the objective of protecting the Community's financial and legal interests in the orderly winding up of KEDO, to be implemented as soon as possible.

(7) The existing detailed arrangements for the representation of the European Union on the Executive Board of KEDO should be kept in place. In that connection, the Council and the Commission have agreed that if, in spite of its decision of May 2007, the Executive Board of KEDO were to address any new matter falling outside Euratom's competence, it is the Presidency of the Council which should take the floor to express a position on such matters, as determined by the Council.

(8) Common Position 2006/244/CFSP expired on 31 December 2006 and should be replaced by this Common Position,

HAS ADOPTED THIS COMMON POSITION:

Article 1

The objective of this Common Position is to enable the European Union to protect its interests in the orderly winding up of KEDO, to be implemented as soon as possible, but by 31 May 2012, at the latest.

Article 2

1. For matters falling outside the competence of Euratom, the position of the European Union within the Executive Board of KEDO shall be determined by the Council and expressed by the Presidency.

2. The Presidency shall therefore be fully associated with the proceedings of the Executive Board of KEDO in accordance with this Common Position.

3. The Commission shall regularly report to the Council on the situation of the winding up process, on an annual basis and as the need arises, under the authority of the Presidency assisted by the Secretary-General/High Representative for the CFSP. The reports shall contain detailed information, in particular, on all measures, taken by the Executive Board of KEDO, in order to implement as soon as possible the orderly winding-up of KEDO.

Article 3

1. This Common Position shall take effect on the date of its adoption.

It shall apply until 31 May 2008.

2. Subject to Article 4, the application of this Common Position shall be automatically renewed each year on 1 June for a period of one year, unless the Council decides otherwise.

The application of this Common Position may be terminated at any time by the Council, in particular, if it should emerge that any of the political conditions for the participation of the European Union in KEDO is not being complied with (sole objective of winding up KEDO, participation of all current members of KEDO, no financial contribution).

Article 4

This Common Position shall expire on 31 May 2012.

Article 5

This Common Position shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Brussels, 22 November 2007.

For the Council

The President

M. Pinho

[1] OJ L 325, 8.12.2001, p. 1.

[2] OJ L 88, 25.3.2006, p. 73.

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