EU General Affairs Council Conclusions

PRESS RELEASE: 2770th Council Meeting, General Affairs and External Relations, GENERAL AFFAIRS, Brussels, 11 December 2006

Main Results of the Council

The Council adopted conclusions on the enlargement of the EU as concerns the accession of Bulgaria and Romania on 1 January 2007 and accession negotiations with Croatia and Turkey.

As regards Turkey, the Council decided in particular to suspend negotiations on eight chapters relevant to Turkey's restrictions as regards the Republic of Cyprus, and will not close the other chapters, until it fulfils its commitments under the additional protocol to the EU-Turkey association agreement, which extended the EU-Turkey customs union to the ten member states, including Cyprus, that joined the EU in May 2004.

The Council emphasized that chapters for which technical preparations have been completed will be opened in accordance with established procedures.

The Council also examined draft conclusions for the December meeting of the European Council, which includes language on the EU's enlargement strategy.

The Council confirmed the establishment of the EU network of energy security correspondents and invited each Member State to nominate their energy correspondent(s) before the 31st January 2007 with a view to the Network being operational in early 2007.

The Council agreed a number of items on external relations and the European security and defence policy, including on:
- the transition of operation ALTHEA in Bosnia and Herzegovina;
- the mandate of the EU planning team for a future ESDP mission in Kosovo;
- the Aceh (Indonesia)peace process and the contribution of the Aceh Monitoring Mission;
- the creation of a WMD Monitoring Centre.

CONTENTS: ITEMS DEBATED

ENLARGEMENT - Council conclusions

PREPARATION OF THE DECEMBER EUROPEAN COUNCIL

OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME OF THE COUNCIL

CIVIL PROTECTION FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT

OTHER BUSINESS
- Cyprus issue

OTHER ITEMS APPROVED

EXTERNAL RELATIONS
- Arms trade treaty - Council conclusions
- UN reform - Council conclusions
- Illicit trafficking of small arms
- Small arms and light weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean
- Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
- Relations with Africa - Implementation of the joint strategy
- Relations with Guinea
- Liberia - Imports of round logs and timber products
- Indonesia/Aceh - Council conclusions
- Fiji - Council conclusions
- Mediterranean and Middle East - Report on the EU's strategic partnership
- European neighbourhood policy - Council conclusions
- Human rights and democratisation - Council conclusions
- Support to disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration
- Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe - Special coordinator
- Efficiency, coherence and visibility of the European Union's external policies

EUROPEAN SECURITY AND DEFENCE POLICY
- Bosnia and Herzegovina - Operation ALTHEA - Council conclusions
- EU crisis management operation in Kosovo
- Civilian headline goal 2008

TRADE POLICY
- Dual-use goods
- WTO - Transparency mechanism for regional agreements
- Anti-dumping - India - Cotton-type bedlinen
- Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine - Steel products
- Agreement with South Africa - Automotive products

GENERAL AFFAIRS
- EU emergency and crisis response capacities
- Proceedings in the Council's different configurations

SOCIAL POLICY
- Seat of the European Gender Institute
- European Social Fund - Combating early school leaving - Council conclusions

ENERGY
- EU network of energy security correspondents - Council conclusions

ENVIRONMENT
- Biodiversity - Conclusions of the Council and the Representatives of the Member States

TRANPARENCY
- Review of the Council's transparency policy

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• EU Council Conclusions on Indonesia/Aceh  (11/12/2006)
• EU Council Conclusions on Operation ALTHEA (11/12/2006)
• EU Council Conclusions on UN Reform (11/12/2006)
• EU Council Conclusions on Arms Trade Treaty (11/12/2006)
• EU Council on Biodiversity: Conclusions of the Council and Representatives of the Governments of Member States - Message from Paris (11/12/2006)
• EU Council Conclusions on implementation of EU policy on human rights and democratisation in third countries (11/12/2006)
• EU Council Conclusions on European Neighbourhood Policy  (11/12/2006)
• EU Council Conclusions on Fiji (11/12/2006)
• EU External Relations Council Conclusions (11/12/2006)
• EU Commission presents recommendation on continuation of Turkey's accession negotiations  (29/11/2006)
• Accession negotiations with Turkey: Transcript of press conference by EU Enlargement Commissioner Rehn  (29/11/2006)