THE LAW OF EXTERNAL RELATIONS OF
THE EU
INHOUD
The Foundations of EU External Relations..............................................................................................1
Introduction .....................................................................................................................................1
Pillar structure .................................................................................................................................3
Three-pillar structure ....................................................................................................................3
Two-Pillar structure .......................................................................................................................4
Legal personality ..............................................................................................................................5
Pre-Lisbon ....................................................................................................................................5
Post Lisbon...................................................................................................................................6
Reparation for injuries case ...........................................................................................................7
Capacity v. competence ................................................................................................................8
Principle of Conferral ........................................................................................................................9
ICJ Advisory Opinion - Nuclear Weapons case ................................................................................9
Principle of conferral in the EU treaties ......................................................................................... 10
Aspects of the principle of conferral ............................................................................................. 10
Strictness correct legal basis – Opining Istanbul Convention ......................................................... 11
Principle of conferral in judgments of CJEU .................................................................................. 11
The Principle of Conferral — Internal Division of Powers ................................................................ 12
The Principle of Conferral — Indicating Competence to Third Parties ............................................. 13
Conferral in External Action — Limits to the Existence of EU Competence ...................................... 14
Explicit Attribution of External Competences ................................................................................... 15
General legal basis for external action in the treaties? ................................................................... 15
Sectoral Approach – Article 28 TFEU ............................................................................................ 16
Theoretical notes by AI ................................................................................................................ 16
Implied External Competences ....................................................................................................... 18
General framework ..................................................................................................................... 18
Implied competence in international law ...................................................................................... 19
Fédération charbonnière de Belgique v High Authority................................................................... 20
Existence v. nature of a competence ............................................................................................ 21
ERTA-competence ...................................................................................................................... 21
Complementarity ........................................................................................................................ 27
General Legal Bases ....................................................................................................................... 34
1
, Artiicle 352 TFEU ......................................................................................................................... 35
Declaration 41 on Article 352 TFEU – Clarifying the Boundaries of General Bases ........................... 37
General Bases – Practice and Limits of Article 352 TFEU ................................................................ 39
Article 352 TFEU as last resort (Opinion 2/94) ............................................................................... 40
Conferral in the CFSP ..................................................................................................................... 41
Exclusivity and non-exclusivity ........................................................................................................... 41
Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 41
COTIF case ................................................................................................................................. 41
Is Competence a Binary Matter? .................................................................................................. 43
Categories of EU competences in the TFEU ...................................................................................... 44
Categories of Competence – Article 2 TFEU .................................................................................. 44
Article 3 TFEU – Exclusive Competences ...................................................................................... 45
Article 4 TFEU - shared and parallel competences ........................................................................ 46
Exclusivity ...................................................................................................................................... 47
Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 47
A priori exclusivity ....................................................................................................................... 49
ERTA Exclusivity .......................................................................................................................... 53
Exclusivity arising out of internal Union legislative acts ................................................................. 67
Exclusivity arising out of the fact that the internal and external aspects of the policy area can only be
exercised effectively together ...................................................................................................... 70
General Legal Bases in the Treaties and Exclusive External Competence ....................................... 79
Effects of Exclusivity ................................................................................................................... 79
Non-exclusivity .............................................................................................................................. 82
Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 83
Non-exclusive competence pending exercise of Union competence .............................................. 85
Non-exclusive competence flowing from the legal basis for external action in the Treaty ................. 86
Non-exclusive external competence on the basis of internal Union minimum standards ................. 87
Non-exclusive competence in areas where Union and Member State competence can co-exist ...... 92
A second look at the categories of competences in the TFEU ............................................................ 92
Categories of Competence in the TFEU – shared competences (Protocol No 25) ............................ 92
Categories of Competence in the TFEU: the CFSP ......................................................................... 94
Reflective Questions ................................................................................................................... 97
External representation and concluding international agreements ........................................................ 98
External representation .................................................................................................................. 98
Basic principles .......................................................................................................................... 98
Commission: Everything but the CFSP (Article 17 TEU) .................................................................. 99
The CFSP (Common Foreign and Security Policy) .......................................................................... 99
2
, Union delegations ..................................................................................................................... 101
Mixity, Member States & Arrangements ...................................................................................... 105
Representation in International Organisations ............................................................................ 105
Concluding International Agreements............................................................................................ 108
‘Agreement’? ............................................................................................................................ 108
Non-binding joint instruments ................................................................................................... 109
Unilateral Acts .......................................................................................................................... 110
Procudural legal basis: article 218 TFEU and its status ................................................................ 111
Legal Basis and Procedure – CCP............................................................................................... 113
Course of the procedure............................................................................................................ 114
Negotiations ............................................................................................................................. 114
Mixity ....................................................................................................................................... 116
Signature and Provisional Application ........................................................................................ 117
Voting in Council....................................................................................................................... 118
Role EP prior to conclusion ........................................................................................................ 121
Publication of International Agreements..................................................................................... 124
Decision-making in a body set up by an international agreement ................................................. 124
Article 218(11) TFEU – Court Opinion Procedure ......................................................................... 128
Concluding international agreements on the horizontal axis ........................................................... 130
Uniform procedure.................................................................................................................... 131
But Choice of Legal Basis Issue Emerges .................................................................................... 132
Mauritius Agreement Case (C-658/11)........................................................................................ 133
Tanzania Agreement Case (C-263/14) ........................................................................................ 133
Kazakhstan Agreement case (C-244/17) ..................................................................................... 134
Armenia Agreement case (C-180/20) .......................................................................................... 136
The CFSP......................................................................................................................................... 137
gENERAL FEATURES OF THE cfsp .................................................................................................. 137
cONFERRAL ............................................................................................................................. 137
mEMBER sTATE OBLIGATIONS .................................................................................................. 140
Nature of the CFSP ................................................................................................................... 143
Scope & objectives ................................................................................................................... 144
Deliminitation of the CFSP – horizontal axis ................................................................................ 146
Guest lecture - Technology and multilateralism in action: insights into the drafting of the first-ever AI
Treaty .............................................................................................................................................. 159
Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 159
Council of Europe and (AI) technology ........................................................................................... 159
Council of Europe ..................................................................................................................... 159
3
, Council of Europe & AI: impressive track record .......................................................................... 161
The long and winding road to the FCAI ........................................................................................... 161
Five things to know about the FCAI ................................................................................................ 161
Scope and Compliance Approaches .......................................................................................... 161
Risk-based approach ................................................................................................................ 163
Focus on human rights, democracy and rule of law ..................................................................... 164
Effective implementation and oversight ..................................................................................... 164
International legal standard ....................................................................................................... 165
Implications for BE/EU/CoE .......................................................................................................... 166
Guest Lecture II: CoE AI Framework Convention ................................................................................ 167
Council of Europe AI Convention vs. EU AI Act ................................................................................ 167
Legislative process ................................................................................................................... 167
The objectives of the Convention ............................................................................................... 168
Similarities Between the Council of Europe AI Convention and the EU AI Act ................................ 168
Material Scope of the Convention (Article 3(1)) ............................................................................... 169
Scope ...................................................................................................................................... 169
Exclusions ................................................................................................................................ 170
Definition of AI system .............................................................................................................. 170
Risk bases approach .................................................................................................................... 171
Risk-Based Approach in the AI Convention ................................................................................. 171
Risk-Based Approach in the EU AI Act ........................................................................................ 171
EU as a Party to the Convention ..................................................................................................... 172
EU as a party to the convention .................................................................................................. 172
The Role of the EU Member States in the AI Convention ............................................................... 173
Conference of the Parties ............................................................................................................. 173
4
THE EU
INHOUD
The Foundations of EU External Relations..............................................................................................1
Introduction .....................................................................................................................................1
Pillar structure .................................................................................................................................3
Three-pillar structure ....................................................................................................................3
Two-Pillar structure .......................................................................................................................4
Legal personality ..............................................................................................................................5
Pre-Lisbon ....................................................................................................................................5
Post Lisbon...................................................................................................................................6
Reparation for injuries case ...........................................................................................................7
Capacity v. competence ................................................................................................................8
Principle of Conferral ........................................................................................................................9
ICJ Advisory Opinion - Nuclear Weapons case ................................................................................9
Principle of conferral in the EU treaties ......................................................................................... 10
Aspects of the principle of conferral ............................................................................................. 10
Strictness correct legal basis – Opining Istanbul Convention ......................................................... 11
Principle of conferral in judgments of CJEU .................................................................................. 11
The Principle of Conferral — Internal Division of Powers ................................................................ 12
The Principle of Conferral — Indicating Competence to Third Parties ............................................. 13
Conferral in External Action — Limits to the Existence of EU Competence ...................................... 14
Explicit Attribution of External Competences ................................................................................... 15
General legal basis for external action in the treaties? ................................................................... 15
Sectoral Approach – Article 28 TFEU ............................................................................................ 16
Theoretical notes by AI ................................................................................................................ 16
Implied External Competences ....................................................................................................... 18
General framework ..................................................................................................................... 18
Implied competence in international law ...................................................................................... 19
Fédération charbonnière de Belgique v High Authority................................................................... 20
Existence v. nature of a competence ............................................................................................ 21
ERTA-competence ...................................................................................................................... 21
Complementarity ........................................................................................................................ 27
General Legal Bases ....................................................................................................................... 34
1
, Artiicle 352 TFEU ......................................................................................................................... 35
Declaration 41 on Article 352 TFEU – Clarifying the Boundaries of General Bases ........................... 37
General Bases – Practice and Limits of Article 352 TFEU ................................................................ 39
Article 352 TFEU as last resort (Opinion 2/94) ............................................................................... 40
Conferral in the CFSP ..................................................................................................................... 41
Exclusivity and non-exclusivity ........................................................................................................... 41
Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 41
COTIF case ................................................................................................................................. 41
Is Competence a Binary Matter? .................................................................................................. 43
Categories of EU competences in the TFEU ...................................................................................... 44
Categories of Competence – Article 2 TFEU .................................................................................. 44
Article 3 TFEU – Exclusive Competences ...................................................................................... 45
Article 4 TFEU - shared and parallel competences ........................................................................ 46
Exclusivity ...................................................................................................................................... 47
Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 47
A priori exclusivity ....................................................................................................................... 49
ERTA Exclusivity .......................................................................................................................... 53
Exclusivity arising out of internal Union legislative acts ................................................................. 67
Exclusivity arising out of the fact that the internal and external aspects of the policy area can only be
exercised effectively together ...................................................................................................... 70
General Legal Bases in the Treaties and Exclusive External Competence ....................................... 79
Effects of Exclusivity ................................................................................................................... 79
Non-exclusivity .............................................................................................................................. 82
Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 83
Non-exclusive competence pending exercise of Union competence .............................................. 85
Non-exclusive competence flowing from the legal basis for external action in the Treaty ................. 86
Non-exclusive external competence on the basis of internal Union minimum standards ................. 87
Non-exclusive competence in areas where Union and Member State competence can co-exist ...... 92
A second look at the categories of competences in the TFEU ............................................................ 92
Categories of Competence in the TFEU – shared competences (Protocol No 25) ............................ 92
Categories of Competence in the TFEU: the CFSP ......................................................................... 94
Reflective Questions ................................................................................................................... 97
External representation and concluding international agreements ........................................................ 98
External representation .................................................................................................................. 98
Basic principles .......................................................................................................................... 98
Commission: Everything but the CFSP (Article 17 TEU) .................................................................. 99
The CFSP (Common Foreign and Security Policy) .......................................................................... 99
2
, Union delegations ..................................................................................................................... 101
Mixity, Member States & Arrangements ...................................................................................... 105
Representation in International Organisations ............................................................................ 105
Concluding International Agreements............................................................................................ 108
‘Agreement’? ............................................................................................................................ 108
Non-binding joint instruments ................................................................................................... 109
Unilateral Acts .......................................................................................................................... 110
Procudural legal basis: article 218 TFEU and its status ................................................................ 111
Legal Basis and Procedure – CCP............................................................................................... 113
Course of the procedure............................................................................................................ 114
Negotiations ............................................................................................................................. 114
Mixity ....................................................................................................................................... 116
Signature and Provisional Application ........................................................................................ 117
Voting in Council....................................................................................................................... 118
Role EP prior to conclusion ........................................................................................................ 121
Publication of International Agreements..................................................................................... 124
Decision-making in a body set up by an international agreement ................................................. 124
Article 218(11) TFEU – Court Opinion Procedure ......................................................................... 128
Concluding international agreements on the horizontal axis ........................................................... 130
Uniform procedure.................................................................................................................... 131
But Choice of Legal Basis Issue Emerges .................................................................................... 132
Mauritius Agreement Case (C-658/11)........................................................................................ 133
Tanzania Agreement Case (C-263/14) ........................................................................................ 133
Kazakhstan Agreement case (C-244/17) ..................................................................................... 134
Armenia Agreement case (C-180/20) .......................................................................................... 136
The CFSP......................................................................................................................................... 137
gENERAL FEATURES OF THE cfsp .................................................................................................. 137
cONFERRAL ............................................................................................................................. 137
mEMBER sTATE OBLIGATIONS .................................................................................................. 140
Nature of the CFSP ................................................................................................................... 143
Scope & objectives ................................................................................................................... 144
Deliminitation of the CFSP – horizontal axis ................................................................................ 146
Guest lecture - Technology and multilateralism in action: insights into the drafting of the first-ever AI
Treaty .............................................................................................................................................. 159
Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 159
Council of Europe and (AI) technology ........................................................................................... 159
Council of Europe ..................................................................................................................... 159
3
, Council of Europe & AI: impressive track record .......................................................................... 161
The long and winding road to the FCAI ........................................................................................... 161
Five things to know about the FCAI ................................................................................................ 161
Scope and Compliance Approaches .......................................................................................... 161
Risk-based approach ................................................................................................................ 163
Focus on human rights, democracy and rule of law ..................................................................... 164
Effective implementation and oversight ..................................................................................... 164
International legal standard ....................................................................................................... 165
Implications for BE/EU/CoE .......................................................................................................... 166
Guest Lecture II: CoE AI Framework Convention ................................................................................ 167
Council of Europe AI Convention vs. EU AI Act ................................................................................ 167
Legislative process ................................................................................................................... 167
The objectives of the Convention ............................................................................................... 168
Similarities Between the Council of Europe AI Convention and the EU AI Act ................................ 168
Material Scope of the Convention (Article 3(1)) ............................................................................... 169
Scope ...................................................................................................................................... 169
Exclusions ................................................................................................................................ 170
Definition of AI system .............................................................................................................. 170
Risk bases approach .................................................................................................................... 171
Risk-Based Approach in the AI Convention ................................................................................. 171
Risk-Based Approach in the EU AI Act ........................................................................................ 171
EU as a Party to the Convention ..................................................................................................... 172
EU as a party to the convention .................................................................................................. 172
The Role of the EU Member States in the AI Convention ............................................................... 173
Conference of the Parties ............................................................................................................. 173
4
