TAIEX - UBC CO-OPERATION
|
For seminars and workshops organised by the Office and for short study visits the costs will all be met by the Office. For study visits there are favourable conditions.
TAIEX is intended to increase transparency for all who supply and use technical assistance in the area of approximation of legislation. Its activities are focused on the Single Market.
UBC and TAIEX are currently discussing a co-operation project on seminars for city officials in various areas. The first occasion will probably be a seminar on EU regulations concerning Waste Management in Poland and in each of the Baltic states. It may be followed by seminars in other environmental matters, public procurement and other issues.
|
Juhan Janusson
UBC Project Manager
e-mail: juhan@post11.tele.dk
The Technical Assistance and
Information Exchange Office
European Commission
Tel. +32 2 2967307
Fax +32 2 2966840
|
|
|
|
|
TAIEX is an office set up inside the Commission to help the Associated Countries of Central and Eastern Europe in their preparation for integration into the single Market. It also collects and exchanges information from these countries and from the Member States about assistance needed or offered, and about the progress which the countries are making toward aligning their legislation with that of the Union.
TAIEX is run by a team of Commission officials, with help from officials detached from the administrations of the Member States, and with a network of contacts in key areas of the Commission and in each of the Member States. This means that the Office can be a 'one stop' for requests for documentation, information and advice of all kinds relating to the Single Market.
The Office helps public administrations in the Associated Countries of Central and Eastern Europe and Cyprus, including local and regional authorities. It offers a range of services, e. g. , providing
|
texts of Single Market legislation, texts from the Member States, advice on transposition, experts from the Commission and the Member States who can visit a country which needs short-term help, workshop sessions in Brussels on key Single Market issues, and short study visits or placements in Brussels and in the Member States.
Request for advice and assistance can come directly from the local authorities, or they can be channelled through coordinating Ministries, or the Representation in Brussels of the country concerned. There is no charge for the supply of single copies of texts, nor for advice given in writing, telephoning or by fax. If advice is needed from an expert who has to visit the country for a few days, standard terms and conditions will apply. In many cases, the necessary costs should be covered by existing Phare multiannual budgets for approximation of laws. When this is not the case, the Office will take over all of the costs of sending an expert.
|
"FREEDOM OF TRAVEL WHILST FIGHTING ABUSE"
|
carry certain amounts of cash.
Again, "green corridors" for known, frequent travellers, tourists and children, along with a more thorough passport and customs control for others would be a more effective solution.
Enhanced co-operation and exchange of information between competent national authorities are pre-requisites for effectively fighting illegal activities. The Task Force on combating organised crime in the Baltic Sea region is a perfect instrument for such coordination.
The effectiveness of visas as instruments for combating criminal or terrorist activities should be studied thoroughly and objectively by an independent body of renowned experts, an international ad hoc "wise men committee". It could also examine the various legal and institutional aspects, which stem from the Schengen Implementing Convention and other relevant EU documents. The aim of this study should be to identify ways of facilitating travel in the Baltic Sea region, which would be fully compatible with the Amsterdam Treaty framework. Preliminary analysis has given reasons to believe that such solutions could be found. It is a matter of political will.
|
|
This issue is of particular concern in areas adjacent to international frontiers. In times of economic and financial turbulence, it is almost a matter of economic survival. That is why it is today one of the most intensely discussed topics on the agenda of the Council of the Baltic Sea States. The CBSS Commissioner has reopened his survey on conditions for travel and movement of people in the region; it is expected to be completed in the coming weeks. The CBSS Secretariat has compiled a factual report, which indicates that the problem has been reduced to crossing the Russian border in both directions. There is mounting concern that cross-border contacts may become more difficult if the existing special visa-free arrangements are abolished in the process of EU enlargement.
The CBSS Committee of Senior Officials exained these issues during its meeting in Kaliningrad on 17-18 February. A question was raised about the strengthening of travel restrictions being in line with key CBSS decisions and political commitments made within the CSCE/OSCE and Council of Europe frameworks. The discussion unearthed a difference of opinion between the Member States, but the topic remains on the CBSS agenda, and the search for solutions continues. Some interesting and promising ideas have already been suggested. |
The ultimate goal, of course, should be a regime which would allow citizens of CBSS countries to travel without visas, on the condition that they carry valid travel documents and remain subject to normal passport and customs control at the border. Should this objective prove to be unattainable, visas could be made more accessible through proliferation of consular offices. Visas issued by one national authority could be made valid for travel to other Baltic Sea States. Visas could also be made more affordable by way of reducing or eliminating relevant fees. Issuance of multiple-entry could become the rule, rather than exception. Visa procedures could be simplified and less time-consuming: their issuance on the spot could be the norm.
Lengthy, cumbersome, and sometimes inhumane border-crossing procedures are often the source of illegal activities. The problem could be alleviated through construction of new border-crossing points, technical upgrading of the existing ones and adequate training of personnel. "Green corridors" should be introduced for law-abiding travellers.
The positive effect of visa-free arrangements could be undermined through an introduction of other barriers, such as the requirement for travellers to |
|
|
|
|
