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Consultations
Consultation on the Trade and investment part of the new Association Agreement between the EU and Kazakhstan
- Policy field: Trade and Industry
- Target group: all stakeholders
- Closing Date: Completed - 24/04/2012
Objective of the consultation
In May 2011 the European Commission was authorised to open negotiations for an enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Kazakhstan. Title 4 of this agreement concerns trade and trade related matters. This part will provide for an upgrade of the current PCA (Partnership and Cooperation Agreement) with Kazakhstan. The agreement will lay the foundation for a political association and a gradual economic integration ultimately bringing the two economies closer. It will aim at a high level of ambition, within the framework of a non preferential trade agreement and cover issues highlighted in this questionnaire.
Kazakhstan is not yet a WTO member. The work for Kazakhstan accession is ongoing whereby the major issue still open with the EU concerns commitments on export duties. Kazakhstan being a member of the Customs Union with Russia and Belarus, the accession of Russia to the WTO will have an impact on its trade relations with other WTO members as Kazakhstan will have to take over Russian commitments in the fields covered by the Customs Union (for example SPS, TBT, import duties)
The questionnaire includes fairly detailed questions in order to capture all possible issues related to the EU's trade interests in Kazakhstan. This approach may lead to some difficulties in filling in all the details of the questionnaire, in which case respondents are invited to focus on the questions which are of most relevance to them.
The questionnaire is divided into the following sections:
A. Trade in Goods
B. Trade in Services and Investments
C. Regulatory Issues (Intellectual Property Rights, Competition & State Aid)
D. Other issues
Please note that energy is taken up as all other sectors in the corresponding horizontal chapters, hence, questions in preceding sections on trade in goods, raw materials, trade facilitation and services/investment as well as other sections (transparency, dispute settlement) apply also to energy. Should there be any additional point you wish to draw the
Commission's attention to, please describe this under chapter "E. Other issues".
In addition, where possible, we would appreciate receiving as specific information as possible (substantiated where possible by economic indicators and/or data) of respondents' interests, prioritisation within sectors, and any proposals for solution, where problems have been identified.
The questionnaire has been prepared in order to provide the Commission with information to assist it in establishing priorities and taking decisions throughout the negotiating process. The Commission, subject to the application of the EU's rules on access to documents (Regulation No 1049/2001), will treat the information that you provide as confidential. EU rules on access to documents allow the Commission to withhold access to a document where disclosure would undermine the commercial interests of a natural or legal person or harm the EU's relations with third countries, unless there is an overriding public interest in disclosure.
Download the question-form here.
Please send your replies by 24 April 2012 to the following e-mail address: trade-industry@ec.europa.eu