RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/REG72/1
4 May 1999
(99-1799)
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements Original:  English
FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN TURKEY AND BULGARIA
The following text reproduces the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Turkey and
Bulgaria.1
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PREAMBLE
The Republic of Turkey  and the Republic of Bulgaria  (hereinafter called the "Parties");
Reaffirming  their commitment to the principles of market economy, which constitutes the
basis for their economic relations, and their compliance with the rights and obligations arising out ofthe Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994);
Considering  their common desire to participate actively in the process of international
economic integration;
Resolved  to this end to eliminate progressively th e obstacles to substantially all their mutual
trade, in accordance with the provisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994
(GATT 1994);
Considering  the rights and the obligations arising out of the Agreement Establishing an
Association between the Republic of Turkey and the European Economic Community, and the EuropeAgreement Establishing an Association between the European Communities and their Member States,
of one part, and the Republic of Bulgaria, of the other part;
Convinced  that this Agreement will create a new climate for their economic relations and, in
particular, for the development of trade, investments and economic and technological co-operation;
Have agreed as follows:
                                                     
1The Annexes and Protocols thereto have been submitted to the Secretariat for consultation by
interested Members (Office 3006).WT/REG72/1
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Article 1
Objectives
1. The Parties shall gradually establish a free trade area, during a transitional period ending at
the latest on 1 January 2002, in accordance with the provisions of the present Agreement and in
conformity with those of the GATT 1994, in particular Article XXIV of the GATT 1994, and the
Agreement Establishing the WTO.
2. The objectives of  present Agreement are:
(a) to promote, through the expansion of mutual trade, the harmonious development of
the economic relations between the Parties;
(b) to provide fair conditions of competition for trade between the Parties;(c) to contribute in this way, by removal of barriers to trade, to the harmonious
development and expansion of world trade;
(d) to enhance co-operation between the Parties.
CHAPTER I
Industrial products
Article 2
Scope
1. The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to industrial products originating in the Parties.2. For the purpose of this Agreement the term "industrial products" means products falling
within Chapters 25 to 97 of the Harmonized Comm odity Description and Coding System with the
exception of the products listed in Annex I.
Article 3
Basic duties
1. For commercial exchanges covered by this Agreement, the Customs Tariff of the Republic of
Bulgaria shall be applied to the classification of goods for imports into the Republic of Bulgaria.  TheCustoms Tariffs of the Republic of Turkey shall be applied to the classification of goods for imports
into the Republic of Turkey.
2. For each product, the basic duty to which successive reductions set out in this Agreement are
to be applied shall be the Most Favoured Nation duty that was in force in the Parties, erga omnes , on
date of the entry into force of this Agreement.
3. If after entry into force of this Agreement, any tariff reduction is applied on an erga omnes
basis, in particular, reductions resulting from the tariff agreement concluded as a result of theWT/REG72/1
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GATT Uruguay Round, such reduced duties shall replace the basic duties referred to in paragraph 2 as
from that date when such reductions are applied.
4. The reduced duties calculated in accordance with paragraph 3 shall be applied rounded to the
first decimal place.
5. The Parties shall communicate to each other their respective basic duties.
Article 4
Customs duties on imports
1. No new customs duties on imports shall be introduced, nor shall those already applied be
increased, in trade between the Parties from the date of entry into force of this Agreement.
2. Customs duties on imports applied in the Republic of Bulgaria on products originating in the
Republic of Turkey, other than those specified in Annex II, shall be abolished from the date of entry
into force of this Agreement.
3. Customs duties on imports applied in the Republic of Bulgaria on products originating in the
Republic of Turkey, specified in Annex II, shall be progressively abolished in accordance with thetimetable provided in that Annex.
4. Customs duties on imports applied in the Republic of Turkey on products originating in the
Republic of Bulgaria, other than those specified in Annex III, shall be abolished from the date of entry
into force of this Agreement.
5. Customs duties on imports applied in the Republic of Turkey on products originating in the
Republic of Bulgaria, specified in Annex III, shall be progressively abolished in accordance with the
timetable provided in that Annex.
Article 5
Charges equivalent to duties
1. No new charges having an effect equivalent to customs duties on imports shall be introduced
in trade between the Parties.
2. All charges having an effect equivalent to customs duties on imports shall be abolished on the
date of entry into force of this Agreement.
Article 6
Customs duties of a fiscal nature
The provisions of Article 4 shall also apply to customs duties of a fiscal nature.WT/REG72/1
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Article 7
Customs duties on exports and charges having equivalent effect
1. No new customs duties on exports or charges having equivalent effect  shall be introduced in
trade between the Parties.
2. The Parties shall abolish between them on the date of entry into force of this Agreement all
customs duties on exports and charges having equivalent effect.
Article 8
Quantitative restrictions on exports and measures having equivalent effect
1. No new quantitative restrictions on exports or measures having equivalent effect shall be
introduced in trade between the Parties.
2. All quantitative restrictions on exports from the Parties and measures having equivalent effect
shall be abolished on the date of entry into force of this Agreement.
Article 9
Quantitative restrictions on imports and measures having equivalent effect
1. No new quantitative restrictions on imports or measures having equivalent effect shall be
introduced in trade between the Parties.
2. All quantitative restrictions and measures having equivalent effect on imports of products
originating in the Parties shall be abolished on the date of entry into force of this Agreement.
Article 10
Technical barriers to trade
1. The rights and obligations of the Parties rela ting to standards or technical regulations and
related measures shall be governed by the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade.
2. The Parties shall co-operate and exchange information in the field of standardization,
metrology, conformity assessment and accreditation with the aim of reducing technical barriers to
trade.
3. Each Party, upon request of the other Party, shall provide information on particular individual
cases of standards, technical regulations or related measures.
4. To eliminate technical barriers and effectively implement this Agreement, the Parties can, on
the basis hereof, conclude an agreement for mutual recognition of test reports, certificates ofconformity and other documents, directly or indirectly, related to conformity assessment of products
which are the subject of the goods exchanged between  Parties, on the basis of regulations in force in
the importing State.WT/REG72/1
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CHAPTER II
Agricultural Products Processed Agricultural Products and Fishery Products
Article 11
Scope
1. The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to agricultural, processed agricultural and fishery
products originating in the Parties.
2. For the purpose of this Agreement the term "agricultural products" means products falling
within Chapters 1 to 24 of the Harmonized Commod ity Description and Coding System, including the
products listed in Annex I.
Article 12
Exchange of concessions
1. The Parties declare their readiness to foster, in so far as their agricultural policies allow, the
harmonious development of trade in agricultural products, and to discuss this issue periodically within
the Joint Committee.
2. In pursuance of this objective, the Parties grant each other the concessions specified in
Protocol A, providing for measures to facilitate trade in agricultural products, in accordance withprovisions of this Chapter and those laid down in this Protocol.
3. Taking account of :
- the role of agriculture in their economies,
- the development of trade in agricultural products between the Parties,
- the particular sensitivity of the agricultural products,- the rules of their agricultural policies,
- the consequences of the multilateral trade negotiations under the GATT and of the
WTO,
the Parties  shall examine the possibilities of granting each other further concessions.
Article 13
Concessions and agricultural policies
1. Without prejudice to the concessions granted under Article 12, the provisions of this Chapter
shall not restrict in any way the pursuance of the respective agricultural policies of the Parties or
application of any measures under such policies, including the implementation of the provisions of the
Agreement on Agriculture negotiated under the auspices of the GATT 1994 and theAgreement Establishing WTO.
2. The Parties shall notify to the Joint Comm ittee changes in their respective agricultural
policies pursued or measures applied which may affect the conditions of agricultural trade amongWT/REG72/1
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them as provided for in this Agreement.  On the request of a Party prompt consultations within the
Joint Committee shall be held to examine the situation.
Article 14
Specific safeguards
Notwithstanding other provisions of this Agreement and, in particular, Article 21, if, given the
particular sensitivity of the agricultural products, imports of products originating in a Party, which are
subject to concessions granted under this Agreement, cause serious disturbances to the markets of the
other Party, the Party concerned shall immediately enter into consultations to find an appropriatesolution.  Pending such solution, the Party concerned may take measures it deems necessary.
Article 15
Sanitary and phytosanitary measures
1. The Parties shall apply their regulations in veterinary, plant health and health matters in a
non-discriminatory fashion and shall not introduce any new measures that have the effect of unduly
obstructing trade.
2. The veterinary-sanitary measures and the work of the veterinary services will be in
accordance with the Office International des Epizoodies Codex and other international conventions in
this field.
3. The phytosanitary measures and the work of the plant protection services will be in
accordance with the International Plant Protection Convention.
CHAPTER III
General Provisions
Article 16
Right of establishment and supply of services
1. The Parties shall seek to widen the scope of this Agreement to cover the right of
establishment of firms of one of the Parties in the territory of the other Party and the liberalization of
the provision of services by one Party’s firms to consumers of services in the other.
2. The Parties will discuss this cooperation in the Joint Committee with the aim of developing
and deepening their relations under this Article.WT/REG72/1
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Article 17
Internal taxation
1. The Parties shall refrain from any measure or practice of an internal fiscal nature establishing
whether directly or indirectly, discrimination between the like products originating in the Parties.
2. Products exported to one of the Parties may not benefit from repayment of internal taxes in
excess of the amount of direct or indirect taxes imposed on them.
Article 18
Customs unions, free-trade areas and frontier trade
1. This Agreement shall not prevent the maintenance or establishment of customs unions,
free-trade areas or arrangements for frontier trade to the extent that these do not negatively affect thetrade regime of the Parties and in particular the provisions concerning rules of origin provided for in
this Agreement.
2. Upon request, consultations between the Parties shall take place within the Joint Committee,
in order the Parties to inform each other about any agreement establishing such customs union orfree-trade area.
Article 19
Structural adjustment
1. Exceptional measures of limited duration which derogate from the provisions of Article 4
may be taken by any of the Parties in the form of increased customs duties.
2. These measures may only concern infant industries, or certain sectors undergoing
restructuring or facing serious difficulties, particularly where these difficulties produce importantsocial problems.
3. Customs duties on imports applicable in the Party concerned to products originating in the
other Party introduced by these measures may not exceed 25 per cent ad valorem  and shall maintain
an element of preference for products originating in the other Party.  The total value of imports of theproduct which are subject to these measures may not exceed 15 per cent of total imports of industrial
products from the other Party as defined in Chapter I, during the last year for which statistics are
available.
4. These measures shall be applied for a period not exceeding four years unless a longer duration
is authorized by the Joint Committee.  They shall c ease to apply at the latest at the expiration of the
transition period.
5. No such measures can be introduced in respect of a product if more than three years have
elapsed since the elimination of all duties and quantitative restrictions or charges or measures havingan equivalent effect concerning the product.
6. The Party concerned shall inform the Joint Co mmittee of any exceptional measures it intends
to take and, at the request of the other Party, consultations shall be held within the Joint Committee onWT/REG72/1
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such measures and the sectors to which they apply before they are applied.  When taking such
measures the Party concerned shall provide the Join t Committee with a schedule for the elimination of
the customs duties introduced under this Article.  This schedule shall provide for a phasing out of
these duties starting at the latest two years after their introduction, at equal annual rates.  The
Joint Committee may decide on a different schedule.
Article 20
Dumping
If a Party finds that dumping, within the mean ing of Article VI of the GATT 1994 is taking
place in trade relations governed by this Agreement, it may take appropriate measures against that
practice in accordance with Article VI of the GATT 1994 and the Agreement on Implementation of
Article VI of the GATT 1994, and in accordance with the procedures laid down in Article 24.
Article 21
Emergency action on import of particular products
Where any product is being imported in such increased quantities and under such conditions
as to cause, or threaten to cause:
(a) serious injury to domestic producers of like or directly competitive products in the
territory of the importing Party, or
(b) serious disturbances in any related sector of the economy or difficulties which could
bring about serious deterioration in the economic situation of a region,
the Party concerned may take appropriate measures under the conditions and in accordance with the
procedures laid down in Article 24.
Article 22
Re-export and serious shortage
1. Where compliance with the provisions of Article 7 and 8 leads to:
(a) re-export towards a third country against which the exporting Party maintains for the
product concerned quantitative export restrictions, export duties or measures or
charges having equivalent effect; or
(b) a serious shortage, or threat thereof, of a product essential to the exporting Party;
and where the situations referred to above give rise or are likely to give rise to major difficulties for
the exporting Party, that Party may take appropriate measures under the conditions and in accordance
with the procedures laid down in Article 24.
2. Measures taken as a result of the situation referred to in paragraph 1 shall be applied in a
non-discriminatory manner and be eliminated when conditions no longer justify their maintenance.WT/REG72/1
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Article 23
State monopolies
The Parties  shall adjust progressively any State monopoly of a commercial character so as to
ensure that by the end of the year following the en try into force of this Agreement, no discrimination
regarding the conditions under which goods are procured and marketed exists between nationals of
the Parties.  The Joint Committee shall be inform ed about the measures adopted to implement this
objective.
Article 24
Procedure for the application of safeguard measures
1. Before initiating the procedure for the application of safeguard measures set out in the
following paragraphs of the present Article, the Parties shall endeavour to solve any differencesbetween them through direct consultations.
2. If a Party subjects imports of  products liable to give rise to the situation referred to in
Article 21 to an administrative procedure, the purpose of which is the rapid provision of information
on the trend of trade flows, it shall inform the other Party.
3. Without prejudice to paragraph 7 of the present Article, a Party which considers resorting to
safeguard measures shall promptly notify the other Party thereof and supply all relevant information.
Consultations between the Parties shall take place without delay in the Joint Committee with a view to
finding a mutually acceptable solution.
4. (a) As regards Articles 20, 21 and 22 the Joint Committee shall examine the case or the
situation and may take any decision needed to put an end to the difficulties notified
by the Party concerned.  In the case of the absence of such decision within thirty days
of the matter being referred to the Joint Committee, the Party concerned may adopt
the measures necessary in order to remedy the situation and shall notify to the other
Party the measures taken.
(b) As regards Article 36, the Party concerned may take appropriate measures after the
consultations have been concluded or after a period of three months has elapsed from
the date of first notification to the other Party.
(c) As regards Articles 28 and 29, the Party concerned shall give the Joint Committee all
the assistance required in order to examine the case and, where appropriate, eliminate
the practice objected to. If the other Party fails to put an end to the practice objected
to within the period fixed by the Joint Committee or if the Joint Committee fails to
reach an agreement within thirty working da ys, of the matter being referred to it, the
Party concerned may adopt the appropriate measures to deal with the difficulties
resulting from the practice in question.
5. The safeguard measures taken shall be notified immediately to the Joint Committee.  They
shall be limited, with regard to their extent and to their duration, to what is strictly necessary in orderto rectify the situation giving rise to their application and shall not be in excess of the injury caused by
the practice or the difficulty in question.  Priority shall be given to such measures as will least disturb
the functioning of this Agreement.WT/REG72/1
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6. The safeguard measures taken shall be the subject of periodic consultations with a view to
their relaxation or abolition as soon as possible, when conditions no longer justify their maintenance.
7. Where exceptional circumstances requiring immediate action make prior examination
impossible, the Party concerned may, in the case of Articles 20, 21 and 22 apply forthwith theprovisional measures strictly necessary to remedy the situation.  The measures shall be notified
without delay and consultations between the Parties shall take place as soon as possible in the
Joint Committee.
Article 25
Rules of origin and co-operation in customs administration
1. Protocol B lays down the rules of origin and related methods of administrative co-operation.
2. The Parties to this Agreement shall take appropriate measures, including regular reviews by
the Joint Committee and arrangements for administrative co-operation, to ensure that the provisions of
Protocol B and Articles 3 to 9, 13, 17 and 19 of  the Agreement are effectively and harmoniously
applied, and to reduce as far as possible the formalities imposed on trade, and to achieve mutually
satisfactory for both Parties solutions to any difficulties arising from the operation of those provisions.
Article 26
General exceptions
This Agreement shall not preclude prohibitions or restrictions on imports, exports or goods in
transit justified on grounds of public morality, public policy or public security; the protection of
health and life of humans, animals or plants and environment; the protection of national treasures
possessing artistic, historic or archaeological value; the protection of intellectual property; or rules
relating to gold or silver or the conservation of exhaustible natural resources, if such measures are
made effective in conjunction with restrictions on domestic production or consumption.  Such
prohibitions or restrictions shall not, however, constitute a means of arbitrary discrimination or adisguised restriction on trade between the Parties.
Article 27
Payments
1. Payments in freely convertible currencies relating to commercial transactions, other than
those existing in the current legislation of the Parties, within framework of this Agreement between
the Parties and the transfer of such payments to the territory of the Party where the creditor residesshall be free from any restrictions.
2. The Parties shall refrain from any exchange or administrative restrictions other than those
existing in the current legislation of the Parties,  on the grant, repayment or acceptance of short and
medium term credits covering commercial transact ions within the framework of this Agreement in
which their resident participates.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, any measures concerning current payments
connected with the movement of goods shall be in conformity with the condi tions laid down under theWT/REG72/1
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Articles of the Agreement of the International Mone tary Fund (IMF), with respect to Turkey, and the
IMF Agreement, with respect to Bulgaria.
Article 28
Rules of competition concerning undertakings
1. The following are incompatible with the proper functioning of this Agreement, in so far as
they may affect trade between the Parties:
(a) all agreements between undertakings, decisions by associations of undertakings and
concerted practices between undertakings which have as their object or effect the
prevention, restriction or distortion of competition;
(b) abuse by one or more undertakings of a dominant position in the territories of the
Parties as a whole or in a substantial part thereof.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to the activities of all undertakings including public
undertakings and undertakings to which the Parties grant special or exclusive rights.  Undertakings
entrusted with the operation of services of general economic interest or having the character of a
revenue-producing monopoly, shall be subject to provisions of paragraph 1 in so far as the applicationof these provisions does not obstruct the performance, in law or in fact, of the particular public tasks
assigned to them.
3. With regard to products referred to in Chapter II the provisions stipulated in paragraph 1(a)
shall not apply to such agreements, decisions and practices which form an integral part of a nationalmarket organization.
4. If a Party considers that a given practice is incompatible with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this
Article and if such practice causes or threatens to cause serious prejudice to the interest of that Party
or material injury to its domestic industry, the Party concerned may take appropriate measures under
the conditions and in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 24.
Article 29
State aid
1. Any aid granted by a State being a Party to th is Agreement or through State resources in any
form whatsoever which distorts or threatens to distort competition by favoring certain undertakings or
the production of certain goods shall, in so far as it may affect trade between the Parties, be
incompatible with the proper functioning of this Agreement.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to products referred to in Chapter II.
3. The Parties shall ensure transparency in the area of state aid measures, inter alia  by reporting
annually to the Joint Committee on the total amount and the distribution of the aid given and by
providing to the other Party, upon request, information on aid schemes and on particular individualcases of state aid.WT/REG72/1
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4. If a Party considers that a particular practice:
(a) is incompatible with the terms of paragraph 1, or(b) causes or threatens to cause serious prejudice to the interest of that Party or material
injury to its domestic industry,
it may take appropriate measures under the conditions and in accordance with the provisions laid
down in Article 24.  Such appropriate measures may only be taken in conformity with the procedures
and under the conditions laid down by the GATT 1994 and by the Agreement Establishing the WTO
and any other relevant instruments negotiated under their auspices which are applicable between the
Parties.
Article 30
Balance of payments difficulties
Where one of the Parties is in serious balance of payment difficulties, or under imminent
threat thereof, the Party concerned may in accordance with the conditions established under the
GATT 1994, under the Articles of the Agreement of the International Monetary Fund, with respect to
Turkey, and the IMF Agreement, with respect to Bulgaria, adopt restrictive measures, includingmeasures related to imports, which shall be of limited duration and may not go beyond what is
necessary to remedy the balance of payments situation.  The measures shall be progressively relaxed
as balance of payments conditions improve and they shall be eliminated when conditions no longer
justify their maintenance.  The Party shall inform  the other Party forthwith of their introduction and,
whenever practicable a time schedule of their removal.
Article 31
Protection of intellectual property
1. The Parties shall grant and ensure protection of intellectual property rights on a
non-discriminatory basis, including measures for the grant and enforcement of such rights.  Parties
confirm their will to respect obligations arising from the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property Rights, constituting Annex 1C to the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the
WTO, as well as other conventions on intellectual property protection, which are signed by both
Parties, and listed in Annex IV.
2. For the purpose of this Agreement the term "intellectual property" refer to all categories of
intellectual property such as: copyright, neighbouring rights, inventor's rights, trademarks and
decorative patterns, geographical indications, topographies of integrated circuits, industrial designs,
utility models, patents, undisclosed information in cluding know-how, new varieties of plants, as well
as prevention of unfair competition.
3. The Parties to this Agreement shall take all necessary measures to enforce these rights against
infringement, and particularly against counterfeiting and piracy.
4. In fulfilment of their commitments under internat ional agreements and legislation in the field
of intellectual property rights, the Parties to this Agreement shall not grant to nationals of the state of
the other Party treatment less favorable than that accorded to nationals of any third State.WT/REG72/1
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5. The Parties shall co-operate in matters of intellectual property.  Upon request of a Party, they
shall hold consultations of experts on these matters, in particular with respect to activities, relating to
the existing or to future international conventions on the harmonization, administration and
vindication of intellectual property rights, and on activities in international organizations, such as the
WTO, World Intellectual Property Organization, as well as concerning the relations of the Partieswith third countries with respect to the intellectual property matters.
Article 32
Public procurement
1. The Parties consider the liberalization of their respective public procurement markets an
objective of this Agreement.
2. The Joint Committee shall review progress in this area annually.
Article 33
The Joint Committee
1. A Joint Committee is hereby established in which each Party shall be represented.2. The Joint Committee shall be responsible for the administration of this Agreement and shall
ensure its proper implementation .
3. For the purpose of the proper implementation of this Agreement, the Parties shall exchange
information and, at the request of any Party, shall hold consultations within the Joint Committee.  The
Committee shall keep under review the possibility of further removal of the obstacles to trade between
the Parties.
4. The Joint Committee may, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 3 of Article 34,
take decisions in the cases provided for in this  Agreement.  On other matters the Committee may
make recommendations.
Article 34
Procedures of the Joint Committee
1. For the proper implementation of this Agreement , the Joint Committee shall meet whenever
necessary but at least once a year.  Each Party may request that a meeting be held.
2. The Joint Committee shall act by common agreement.
3. If a representative in the Joint Committee of a Party to this Agreement has accepted a
decision subject to the fulfilment of internal lega l requirements, the decision shall enter into force, if
no later date is contained therein, on the day the lifting of the reservation is notified.
4. For the purpose of this Agreement the Joint Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure
which shall, inter alia , contain provisions for convening meetings and for the designation of the
Chairman and his/her term of office.WT/REG72/1
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5. The Joint Committee may decide to set up such sub-committees and working parties as it
considers necessary to assist it in accomplishing its tasks.
Article 35
Security exceptions
Nothing in this Agreement shall prevent a Party from taking any measures which it considers
necessary:
(a) to prevent the disclosure of information contrary to its essential security interests;(b) for the protection of its essential security interests or for the implementation of
international obligations or national policies,
(i) relating to the traffic in arms, ammunition and implements of war, provided
that such measures do not impair the conditions of competition in respect of
products not intended for specifically military purposes, and to such traffic in
other goods, materials and services as is carried on directly or indirectly for
the purpose of supplying a military establishment; or
(ii) relating to the non-proliferation of biological and chemical weapons, nuclear
weapons or other nuclear explosive devices; or
(iii) taken in time of war or other serious international tension .
Article 36
Fulfilment of obligations
1. The Parties shall take all necessary measures required to fulfill their obligations under this
Agreement.  They shall ensure that the objectives set out in the Agreement are achieved.
2. If a Party considers that the other Party has failed to fulfill an obligation under this
Agreement, the Party concerned may take the appropriate measures under the conditions and in
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 24.
Article 37
Evolutionary clause
1. Where a Party considers that it would be useful in the interest of the economies of the Parties
to develop and deepen the relations established by this Agreement by extending them to fields not
covered thereby, it shall submit a reasoned request to  the other Party.  The Parties may instruct the
Joint Committee to examine such a request and, where appropriate, to make recommendations,
particularly with a view to opening negotiations.
2. Agreements resulting from the procedure referred to in paragraph 1 will be subject to
ratification or approval by the Parties in accordance with their own procedures.WT/REG72/1
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Article 38
Amendments
Amendments to this Agreement other than those decided upon in accordance with
paragraph 3 of Article 34, and which are approved by the Joint Committee, shall be submitted to the
Parties for acceptance in accordance with the requirements of their respective legislation and shall
enter into force on the date of receipt of the latter diplomatic note confirming that all procedures
required by the national legislation of each Party for entry into force of the amendments have been
completed .
Article 39
Protocols and annexes
Annexes and Protocols to this Agreement are an integral part of it. The Joint Committee may
decide to amend Annexes and the Protocols.
Article 40
Validity and withdrawal
This Agreement is concluded for an unlimited period. Each Party to this Agreement may
withdraw therefrom, by  means of a written notification to the other Party. The termination shall take
effect on the first day of the sixth month following the date on which the notification was received bythe other Party.
Article 41
Entry into force
1. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the date when
the Parties have notified each other that respective internal requirements for the entry into force of this
Agreement have been fulfilled.
2. This Agreement shall be applied provisionally from the first day of the first month following
the date of notification by the Republic of Turkey th at its internal requirements for the entry into force
of this Agreement have been fulfilled.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned plenipotentiaries, being duly authorized thereto,
have signed the present Agreement.
Done at Sofia, this 11th day of July 1998 in two originals in English language, both text being
equally authentic.
For the Republic of Turkey For the Republic of Bulgaria
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