Advocate General’s Opinion in Case C-104/16 P Council v Polisario Front

Author (Corporate)
Series Title
Series Details No.94, 2016 (13.09.16)
Publication Date 13/09/2016
Content Type

The European Court of Justice published on 13 September 2016 the Opinion of its Advocate General, Melchior Wathelet, regarding Western Sahara and its inclusion on the trade agreement between Morocco and the European Union.

According to Mr Wathelet, neither the EU-Morocco Association Agreement nor the EU-Morocco Agreement on the liberalisation of trade in agricultural and fishery products apply to Western Sahara. Therefore, it is suggested that the Court should set aside the judgment of the General Court which held that those agreement apply to that territory.

In 2012, Morocco and the EU concluded an agreement on those liberalisation measures, the territorial scope of which depends on that of the EU-Morocco Association Agreement. The Polisario Front brought an action before the General Court of the European Union seeking the annulment of that decision. By its judgment, delivered on 10 December 2015, the General Court annulled the decision at issue, in so far as it approves the application of the Liberalisation Agreement to Western Sahara. The Council of the European Union then brought an appeal before the Court of Justice against the judgment of the General Court.

Source Link http://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2016-09/cp160094en.pdf
Related Links
ESO: Background information: Mogherini heads to Morocco after EU ties suspended http://www.europeansources.info/record/mogherini-heads-to-morocco-after-eu-ties-suspended/
ESO: Background information: EU-Morocco Agreement on agricultural and fishery products http://www.europeansources.info/record/eu-morocco-agreement-on-agricultural-and-fishery-products/
EurActiv, 13.09.16: EU court lawyer says decision to stop EU-Morocco trade deal was wrong http://www.euractiv.com/section/trade-society/news/eu-court-lawyer-says-decision-to-stop-eu-morocco-trade-deal-was-wrong/
The Wall Street Journal, 13.09.16: EU Court Adviser Opines Dismissing Challenge Against EU-Morocco Trade Deals http://www.wsj.com/articles/eu-court-adviser-opines-dismissing-challenge-against-eu-morocco-trade-deals-1473757002
EUObserver, 13.09.16: Morocco deals don't cover Western Sahara, EU lawyer says https://euobserver.com/economic/135063

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