WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/REG153/1
4 June 2003
(03-2884)
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements Original:  English/
French/
Spanish
EC-LEBANON INTERIM AGREEMENT
The following text reproduces the Interim Ag reement between the European Community and
Lebanon and the relevant Joint Declarations.1
_______________
Interim Agreement on trade and trade-related matters between
the European Community, of the one part, and the Republic of Lebanon, of the other part
The European Community , hereinafter referred to as the "Community", of the one part, and
The Republic of Lebanon , hereinafter referred to as "Lebanon", of the other part,
Whereas  he Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an Association between the
European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Lebanon, of theother part, was signed at Luxembourg on 17 June 2002,
Whereas  the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement is intended to strengthen and widen
relations between the Community and its Member States and Lebanon established by the existing
Cooperation Agreement of 1977,
Whereas  it is in the mutual interest of the Parties to implement as speedily as possible, by
means of an Interim Agreement, the provisions of the Association Agreement on trade and trade-
related matters,
Whereas  it is necessary to ensure that, pending the entry into force of the Association
Agreement and the establishment of the Association Council, the Cooperation Council set up by theexisting Cooperation Agreement of 1977 exercise the powers assigned by the Association Agreement
to the Association Council, which are necessary in order to implement the Interim Agreement,
Have decided  to conclude this Agreement and to this end have designated as their
plenipotentiaries:
THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
Josep Piqué i Camps
Minister of Foreign Affair s of the Kingdom of Spain
President-in-Office of the Council of the European Union
Chris Patten
Member of the Commission of the European Communities
                                                     
1 The text of the Agreement together with its Annexes and Protocols is available at
http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/pri/en/oj/dat/2002/l_262/l_26220020930en00020179.pdf . It has also been submitted
to the Secretariat for consultation by interested Members (Office 1174).WT/REG153/1
Page 2
LEBANON
Mahmoud Hammoud
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants
Who, having exchanged their full powers, found in good and due form,
Have agreed as follows:
TITLE I
General Principles
Article 1 (aa2)
Relations between the Parties, as well as all th e provisions of this Agreement itself, shall be
based on respect of democratic principles and fundamental human rights as set out in the Universal
Declaration on Human Rights, which guides their internal and international policy and constitutes anessential element of this Agreement.
TITLE II
Free Movement of Goods
Article 2 (aa6)
The Community and Lebanon shall gradually establish a free trade area over a transitional
period not exceeding 12 years from the entry into force of this Agreement according to the modalitiesset out in this title and in conformity with the provisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade of 1994 and of the other multilateral agreements on trade in goods annexed to the Agreement
establishing the World Trade Organisation (WTO), hereinafter referred to as the GATT.
CHAPTER 1
Industrial Products
Article 3 (aa7)
The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to products originating in the Community and
Lebanon falling within Chapters 25 to 97 of the Combined Nomenclature and of the Lebanesecustoms tariff with the exception of the products listed in Annex 1.
Article 4 (aa8)
Imports into the Community of products originating in Lebanon shall be allowed free of
customs duties and of any other charge having equivalent effect.
Article 5 (aa9)
1. Customs duties and charges having equivalent effect applicable on import into Lebanon of
products originating in the Community shall be progressively abolished in accordance with the
following schedule:WT/REG153/1
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− five years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 88 % of the basic rate,
− six years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 76 % of the basic rate,
− seven years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 64 % of the basic rate,
− eight years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 52 % of the basic rate,
− nine years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 40 % of the basic rate,
− 10 years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 28 % of the basic rate,
− 11 years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement each duty and charge
shall be reduced to 16 % of the basic rate,
− 12 years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement the remaining duties and
charges shall be abolished.
2. In the event of serious difficulties for a given product, the schedule applicable under
paragraph 1 above may be reviewed by the Cooperation Council by common accord on the
understanding that the schedule for which the review has been requested may not be extended in
respect of the product concerned beyond the maximum transitional period of 12 years. If the
Cooperation Council has not taken a decision within 30 days of an application by Lebanon to review
the schedule, Lebanon may suspend the schedule provisionally for a period which may not exceed oneyear.
3. For each product concerned, the basic duty to be gradually reduced as provided in paragraph
1 shall be the rates referred to in Article 15.
Article 6 (aa10)
The provisions concerning the abolition of customs duties on imports shall also apply to
customs duties of a fiscal nature.
Article 7 (aa11)
1. Exceptional measures of limited duration which derogate from the provisions of Article 5
may be taken by Lebanon in the form of an increase or reintroduction of customs duties.
2. These measures may only concern new and infant industries, or sectors undergoing
restructuring or facing serious difficulties, particularly where these difficulties entail major social
problems.
3. Customs duties on imports into Lebanon of products originating in the Community that are
introduced by such exceptional measures may not exceed 25 % ad valorem and shall maintain an
element of preference for products originating in the Community. The total value of imports of theWT/REG153/1
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products which are subject to these measures may not exceed 20 % of the yearly average of total
imports of industrial products from the Community during the last three years for which statistics are
available.
4. These measures shall be applied for a period not exceeding five years unless a longer duration
is authorised by the Cooperation C ouncil. They shall cease to apply at the latest on the expiry of the
maximum transitional period of 12 years.
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 having
equivalent effect concerning that product.
6. Lebanon shall inform the Cooperation Council of  any exceptional measures it intends to adopt
and, at the request of the Community, consultations shall be held on the measures and sectors
concerned before they are implemented. When adopting such measures Lebanon shall provide the
Cooperation Council with a schedule for the elimin ation of the customs duties introduced under this
Article. This schedule shall provide for a phasing-out of these duties in equal annual instalmentsstarting no later than the end of the second year following their introduction. The Cooperation Council
may decide on a different schedule.
7. By way of derogation from provisions of paragraph 4, the Cooperation Council may
exceptionally, to take account of the difficulties involved in setting up new industries, endorse themeasures already taken by Lebanon pursuant to paragraph 1 for a maximum period of three years
beyond the 12 year transitional period.
CHAPTER 2
Agricultural, Fisheries and Processed Agricultural Products
Article 8 (aa12)
The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to products originating in the Community and
Lebanon falling within Chapters 1 to 24 of the Co mbined Nomenclature and of the Lebanese customs
tariff and to the products listed in Annex 1.
Article 9 (aa13)
The Community and Lebanon shall progressively establish a greater liberalisation of their
trade in agricultural, fisheries and processed agricultural products, of interest to both parties.
Article 10 (aa14)
1.  Agricultural products originating in Lebanon listed in Protocol 1 on importation into the
Community shall be subject to the arrangement set out in that Protocol.
2. Agricultural products originating in the Community listed in Protocol 2 on importation into
Lebanon shall be subject to the arrangement set out in that Protocol.
3. Trade in processed agricultural products falling under this chapter shall be subject to the
arrangements set out in Protocol 3.
Article 11 (aa15)
1. Five years after the entry into force of this Agreement, the Community and Lebanon shallWT/REG153/1
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assess the situation in order to determine measures to be applied by the Community and Lebanon one
year following the revision of this Agreement, in accordance with the objective set out in Article 9.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 1 and taking account of the volume of trade
in agricultural, fisheries and processed agricultural products between the two Parties and the particularsensitivity of such products, the Community and Lebanon shall examine on a regular basis in the
Cooperation Council, product by product and on an orderly and reciprocal basis, the possibility of
granting each other further concessions.
Article 12 (aa16)
1. In the event of specific rules being introdu ced as a result of the implementation of its
agricultural policy or of any alteration of the cu rrent rules or in the event of any alteration or
extension of the provisions relating to the impl ementation of its agricultural policy, the Party
concerned may amend the arrangements resulting from the Agreement in respect of the products
concerned.
2. The Party carrying out such modification shall in form the Cooperation Council thereof. At the
request of the other Party, the Cooperation Council sh all meet to take due account of the interest of
the other Party.
3. If the Community or Lebanon, in applying paragraph 1, modifies the arrangements made by
this Agreement for agricultural products, they shall accord imports originating in the other Party an
advantage comparable to that provided for in this Agreement.
4. Any modification of the arrangements made by this Agreement shall be the subject, at the
request of the other Party, of consultations within the Cooperation Council.
Article 13 (aa17)
1. Both Parties agree to cooperate to reduce the potential for fraud in the application of the trade
provisions of this Agreement.
2. Notwithstanding other provisions of this Agreement, where one Party finds that there is
sufficient evidence of fraud such as a significant increase in trade products by one party to the other
party, beyond the level reflecting economic conditions such as normal production and export
capacities, or failure to provide administrative cooperation as required for the verification of evidence
of origin by the other Party, both Parties shall enter into consultations immediately to find an
appropriate solution. Pending such a solution, the Party concerned may take the appropriate measuresit deems necessary. In the selection of the measure priority must be given to those which least disturb
the functioning of the arrangements established in this Agreement.
CHAPTER 3
Common Provisions
Article 14 (aa18)
1. No new customs duties on imports or exports or  charges having equivalent effect shall be
introduced in trade between the Community and Le banon, nor shall those already applied upon entry
into force of this Agreement be increased unless this Agreement provides otherwise.WT/REG153/1
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2. No new quantitative restriction on imports or measure having equivalent effect shall be
introduced in trade between the Community and Lebanon.
3. Quantitative restrictions on imports and measures having equivalent effect in trade between
Lebanon and the Community shall be abolished upon the entry into force of this Agreement.
4. Neither the Community nor Lebanon shall apply to exports between themselves either
customs duties or charges having equivalent effect, or quantitative restrictions or measures of
equivalent effect.
Article 15 (aa19)
1. For each product the basic rate to which the successive reductions laid down in Article 5(1)
are to be applied shall be that actually applied vis-à-vis the Community on the day of conclusion of
the negotiations.
2. In the event of the accession of Lebanon to th e WTO, the applicable rates for imports between
the Parties shall be the WTO bound rate or lower effectively applied rate enforced as of the date of the
accession. If, after the accession to the WTO, a tariff reduction is applied on an erga omnes basis, the
reduced rate shall apply.
3. The provision laid down in paragraph 2 is of application for any tariff reduction applied after
the day of conclusion of the negotiations on an erga omnes basis.
4. The Parties shall communicate to each other their respective applied rates on the day of
conclusion of the negotiations.
Article 16 (aa20)
Products originating in Lebanon shall not enjoy more favourable treatment when imported
into the Community than that applied by Member States among themselves.
Article 17 (aa21)
1. The Parties shall refrain from any measure or practice of an internal fiscal nature establishing,
whether directly or indirectly, discrimination between the products of one Party and like products
originating in the territory of the other Party.
2. Products exported to the territory of one of the Parties may not benefit from repayment of
indirect internal taxation in excess of the amount of indirect taxation imposed on them either directly
or indirectly.
Article 18 (aa22)
1. This Agreement shall not preclude the maintenance or establishment of customs unions, free
trade areas or arrangements for frontier trade except in so far as they alter the trade arrangements
provided for in this Agreement.
2. Consultations between the Parties shall take place within the Cooperation Council concerning
agreements establishing such customs unions or free trade areas and, where requested, on other major
issues related to their respective trade policies with third countries. In particular, in the event of a third
country acceding to the Community, such consultations shall take place so as to ensure that account
can be taken of the mutual interests of the Community and Lebanon.WT/REG153/1
Page 7
Article 19 (aa23)
If one of the Parties finds that dumping is taking place in trade with the other Party in line
with prevailing international rules as defined in Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT) 1994 and related internal legislation, it may take appropriate measures against thispractice in accordance with the WTO Agreement on the implementation of Article VI of the GATT
1994 and related internal legislation.
Article 20 (aa24)
1. Without prejudice to Article 27, the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing
Measures shall apply between the Parties.
2. Until the necessary rules referred to in Article 27(2) are adopted, if either Party finds that
subsidy is taking place in trade with the other Pa rty in line with prevailing international rules as
defined in Articles VI and XVI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 and
related internal legislation, it may invoke appropriate measures against this practice in accordancewith those rules as defined by the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and
related internal legislation.
Article 21 (aa25)
1. The provisions of Article XIX of the GATT 1994 and the WTO Agreement on Safeguards
and related internal legislation are applicable between the Parties.
2. Before applying safeguard measures as defined by international rules, the Party intending to
apply such measures shall supply the Cooperation C ouncil with all relevant information required for a
thorough examination of the situation with a view to seeking a solution acceptable to the Parties.
In order to find such a solution the Parties shall immediately hold consultations within the
Cooperation Council. If, as a result of the consulta tions, the Parties do not reach an agreement within
30 days of the initiation of the consultations on a solution to avoid the application of the safeguard
measures, the Party intending to apply safeguard m easures may apply the provisions of Article XIX of
the GATT 1994 and the WTO Agreement on Safeguards.
3. In the selection of safeguard measures pursuant to this article, the Parties shall give priority to
those, which cause least disturbance to the achievement of the objectives of this Agreement.
4. Safeguard measures shall be notified immediately to the Cooperation Council and shall be the
subject of periodic consultations within the Cooperation Council, particularly with a view to their
abolition as soon as circumstances permit.
Article 22 (aa26)
1. Where compliance with the provisions of Article 14(4) leads to:
(a) re-export to 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 forWT/REG153/1
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the exporting Party, that Party may take appropriate measures under the conditions and in accordance
with the procedures laid down in paragraph 2.
2. The difficulties arising from the situations refe rred to in paragraph 1 shall be submitted for
examination to the Cooperation Council. The Coop eration Council may take any decision needed to
put an end to the difficulties. If it has not taken such a decision within 30 days of the matter being
referred to it, the exporting party may apply appropriate measures on the exportation of the product
concerned. The measures shall be non-discriminatory and shall be eliminated when conditions no
longer justify their maintenance.
Article 23 (aa27)
Nothing in this Agreement shall preclude prohibitions or restrictions on imports, exports or
goods in transit justified on grounds of public morality, public policy or public security; of the
protection of health and life of humans, animals or plants; of the protection of national treasures of
artistic, historic or archaeological value; of th e protection of intellectual, industrial and commercial
property; of rules relating to gold and silver and conservation of exhaustible natural resources. Suchprohibitions or restrictions shall not, however, cons titute a means of arbitrary discrimination or a
disguised restriction on trade between the Parties.
Article 24 (aa28)
The concept of "originating products" for the application of the provisions of the present title
and the methods of administrative cooperation relating thereto are laid down in Protocol 4.
Article 25 (aa29)
The Combined Nomenclature of goods shall be applied to the classification of goods for
imports into the Community. The Lebanese customs tariff shall be applied to the classification of
goods for imports into Lebanon.
Article 26 (aa34)
Where one or several Member States of the Community or Lebanon face or risk facing
serious difficulties concerning balance of payments, the Community or Lebanon respectively may, in
conformity with the conditions laid down within the framework of the GATT and Articles VIII and
XIV of the Statutes of the International Monetary Fund, take restrictive measures with regard to
current payments if such measures are strictly necessary. The Community or Lebanon, as appropriate,
shall inform the other Party immediately thereof and shall provide as soon as possible a timetable forthe removal of such measures.
TITLE III
Trade-Related Provisions
CHAPTER 1
Competition
Article 27 (aa35)
1. The following are incompatible with the proper functioning of this Agreement, in so far as
they may affect trade between the Community and Lebanon:WT/REG153/1
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(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, as defined by their respective
legislation;
(b) abuse by one or more undertakings of a dominant position in the territories of the
Community or Lebanon as a whole or in a substantial part thereof, as defined by their
respective legislation.
2. The Parties will enforce their respective competition legislation and shall exchange
information taking into account the limitations imposed by the requirements of confidentiality. The
necessary rules for cooperation in order to implement paragraph 1 shall be adopted by the
Cooperation Council within five years of entry into force of this Agreement.
3. If the Community or Lebanon considers that a particular practice is incompatible with the
terms of paragraph 1 of this Article, and if such practice causes or threatens to cause serious prejudice
to the other Party, it may take appropriate measures after consultation within the Cooperation Council
or after 30 working days following referral for such consultation.
Article 28 (aa36)
The Member States and Lebanon shall progressively adjust, without prejudice to their
commitments respectively taken or to be taken under the GATT, any State monopolies of a
commercial character, so as to ensure that, by the end of the fifth year following the entry into force of
this Agreement, no discrimination regarding the conditions under which goods are procured and
marketed exists between nationals of the Member States and of Lebanon. The Cooperation Council
will be informed about the measures adopted to implement this objective.
Article 29 (aa37)
With regard to public enterprises and enterprises to which special or exclusive rights have
been granted, the Cooperation Council shall ensure that as from the fifth year following the date of
entry into force of this Agreement there is neither enacted nor maintained any measure distorting trade
between the Community and Lebanon to an extent cont rary to the Parties' interests. This provision
should not obstruct the performance in law or in fact of the particular tasks assigned to these
enterprises.
CHAPTER 2
Intellectual, Industrial and Commercial Property
Article 30 (aa38)
1. Pursuant to the provisions of this Article and of Annex 2, the Parties shall ensure adequate
and effective protection of intellectual, industrial and commercial property rights in conformity with
the highest international standards, including effective means of enforcing such rights.
2. The implementation of this Article and of Annex 2 shall be regularly reviewed by the Parties.
If problems in the area of intellectual property protection affecting trading conditions occur, urgent
consultations shall be undertaken, at the request of either Party, with a view to reaching mutually
satisfactory solutions.WT/REG153/1
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CHAPTER 3
Customs Cooperation
Article 31 (aa56)
1. The Parties shall develop customs cooperation to ensure that the provisions on trade are
observed. For this purpose they shall establish a dialogue on customs matters.
2. Cooperation shall focus on the simplification of controls and procedures concerning the
customs clearance of goods, and shall take the form of exchange of information among experts and
vocational training.
3. Mutual assistance between administrative authorities in customs matters shall take place in
accordance with the provisions of Protocol 5.
TITLE IV
Institutional, General and Final Provisions
Article 32
The Cooperation Council set up by the Agreement between the European Economic
Community and the Republic of Lebanon signed on 3 May 1977 shall perform duties assigned to it
until the Association Council and the Associati on Committee provided for in Articles 74 and 77
respectively of the Association Agreement are established.
Article 33 (aa75)
1. The Cooperation Council shall consist of the members of the Council of the European Union
and members of the Commission of the European Communities, on the one hand, and of members of
the Government of Lebanon, on the other.
2. Members of the Cooperation Council may arrange to be represented, in accordance with the
provisions laid down in its Rules of Procedure.
3. The Cooperation Council shall establish its Rules of Procedure.4. The Cooperation Council shall be chaired in turn by a member of the Council of the European
Union and a member of the Government of Lebanon in accordance with the provisions laid down in
its Rules of Procedure.
Article 34 (aa82)
1. Each of the Parties may refer to the Cooperation Council any dispute relating to the
application or interpretation of this Agreement.
2. The Cooperation Council may settle the dispute by means of a decision.
3. Each Party shall be bound to take the measures involved in carrying out the decision referredto in paragraph 2.
4. In the event of it not being possible to settle the dispute in accordance with paragraph 2, either
Party may notify the other of the appointment of an arbitrator; the other Party must then appoint aWT/REG153/1
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second arbitrator within two months. For the application of this procedure, the Community and the
Member States shall be deemed to be one Party to the dispute.
The Cooperation Council shall appoint a third arbitrator.
The arbitrators' decisions shall be taken by majority vote.
Each party to the dispute must take the steps required to implement the decision of the
arbitrators.
Article 35 (aa83)
Nothing in this Agreement shall prevent a Party from taking any measures:
(a) which it considers necessary to prevent the disclosure of information contrary to its
essential security interests;
(b) which relate to the production of, or trade in, arms, munitions or war materials or to
research, development or production indispensable for defence purposes, provided
that such measures do not impair the conditions of competition in respect of products
not intended for specifically military purposes;
(c) which it considers essential to its own security in the event of serious internal
disturbances affecting the maintenance of law and order, in time of war or serious
international tension constituting threat of war or in order to carry out obligations it
has accepted for the purpose of maintaining peace and international security.
Article 36 (aa84)
1. In the fields covered by this Agreement and without prejudice to any special provisions
contained therein:
(a) the arrangements applied by Lebanon in respect of the Community shall not give rise
to any discrimination between the Member States, their nationals, companies orfirms;
(b) the arrangements applied by the Community in respect of Lebanon shall not give rise
to any discrimination between Lebanese nationals, companies or firms.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall be without prejudice to the right of the Parties to apply
the relevant provisions of their fiscal legislation to taxpayers who are not in identical situations as
regards their place of residence.
Article 37 (aa86)
1. The Parties shall take any general or specific measures required to fulfil their obligations
under the Agreement. They shall see to it that the objectives set out in this Agreement are attained.
2. If either Party considers that the other Party has failed to fulfil an obligation under this
Agreement, it may take appropriate measures. Before so doing, except in cases of special urgency, itshall supply the Cooperation Council with all the relevant information required for a thorough
examination of the situation with a view to seeking a solution acceptable to the Parties.
3. In the selection of the appropriate measures referred to in paragraph 2, priority must be givenWT/REG153/1
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to those which least disturb the functioning of this Agreement. The Parties also agree that these
measures shall be taken in accordance with international law and shall be proportional to the
violation.
These measures shall be notified immediately to the Cooperation Council and shall be the
subject of consultations within the Cooperation Council if the other Party so requests.
Article 38 (aa87)
Annexes 1 and 2 and Protocols 1 to 5 shall form an integral part of this Agreement.
Article 39 (aa89)
1. This Agreement shall be applicable until the entry into force of the Association Agreement
signed on 17 June 2002.
2. Either Party may denounce this Agreement by notifying the other Party. This Agreement shall
cease to apply six months after the date of such notification.
Article 40 (aa90)
This Agreement shall apply, on the one hand, to the territories in which the Treaty
establishing the European Community is applied and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty
and, on the other hand, to the territory of Lebanon.
Article 41 (aa91)
This Agreement is drawn up in duplicate in the Arabic, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish,
French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swedish languages, each of these texts
being equally authentic. It shall be deposited with the General Secretariat of the Council of the
European Union.
Article 42 (aa92)
1. This Agreement shall be approved by the Parties in accordance with their own procedures.
2. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following the date
on which the Parties notify each other that the procedures referred to in paragraph 1 have been
completed.
3. Upon its entry into force, this Agreement shall replace Articles 8 to 28, 30 to 34, 36(1), 37, 40
to 44, 46 to 49 of the Cooperation Agreement between the European Economic Community and the
Republic of Lebanon, including its Protocol 2, and Annexes A, B and C, and the Agreement between
the Member States of the European Coal and Steel Community and Lebanon, signed in Brussels on 3May 1977.
Done at Luxembourg, on the seventeenth day of June in the year two thousand and two.
_______________WT/REG153/1
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JOINT DECLARATIONS
Joint Declaration relating to Article 9 of the Interim Agreement
(aa14)
Both Parties agree to negotiate with a view to granting each other concessions in the trade of
fish and fishery products on the basis of reciprocity and mutual interest, with the objective of reaching
agreement on the details no later than two years after the signature of this Agreement.
Joint Declaration relating to Article 23 of the Interim Agreement
 (aa27)
The Parties confirm their intention to prohibit the export of toxic waste and the European
Community confirms its intention to assist Lebanon in seeking solutions to the problems posed by
such waste.
Joint Declaration relating to Article 24 of the Interim Agreement
(aa28)
In order to take account of the timescale necessary for setting up the free trade areas between
Lebanon and the other Mediterranean countries, the Community undertakes to give favourableconsideration to requests presented to it for anticipated application of the diagonal cumulation with
those countries.
Joint Declaration relating to Article 27 of the Interim Agreement
 (aa35)
The implementation of cooperation mentioned in Article 27(2) is conditional upon the entry
into force of a Lebanese competition law and of the taking up of the duties of the authority
responsible for its application.
Joint Declaration relating to Article 30 of the Interim Agreement
(aa38)
The Parties agree that for the purpose of the Agreement, intellectual, industrial and
commercial property includes in particular copyrigh t, including the copyright in computer programs,
and neighbouring rights, the rights relating to databases, the rights relating to patents, industrial
designs, geographical indications, including designations of origin, trademarks and service marks,topographies of integrated circuits, as well as protection against unfair competition as referred to in
Article 10a of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and protection of
undisclosed information on know-how.
The provisions of Article 30 shall not be interpreted in a manner to oblige either Party to
accede to international conventions other than those referred to in Annex 2.
The Community will grant technical assistance to the Lebanese Republic in its endeavour to
comply with its obligations under Article 30.WT/REG153/1
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Joint Declaration relating to Article 37 of the Interim Agreement
(aa86)
(a) The Parties agree, for the purposes of the correct interpretation and practical application of
this Agreement, that the term "cases of spec ial urgency" in Article 37 means a case of the
material breach of the Agreement by one of the Parties. A material breach of the Agreement
consists in:
− repudiation of the Agreement not sanctioned by the general rules of international law,
− violation of the essential element of the Agreement, namely its Article 1.
(b) The Parties agree that the "appropriate measures" referred to in Article 37 are measures taken
in accordance with international law. If a Party takes a measure in a case of special urgency asprovided for under Article 37, the other Party may avail itself of the procedure relating to
settlement of disputes.
_______________
DECLARATIONS BY THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
Declaration by the European Community on Turkey
The Community recalls that according to th e customs union in force between the Community
and Turkey, this country has the obligation, in relation to countries which are not members of the
Community, to align itself on the Common Customs Tariff and, progressively, with the preferential
customs regime of the Community, taking the necessary measures and negotiating agreements onmutually advantageous basis with the countries concerned. Consequently, the Community invites
Lebanon to enter into negotiations with Turkey as soon as possible.
Declaration by the European Community relating to Article 27 of the Interim Agreement
(aa35)
The European Community declares that, in the context of the interpretation of Article 27(1), it
will assess any practice contrary to that article on the basis of the criteria resulting from the rules
contained in Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, including
secondary legislation.
__________