CODICES

ARM-2002-3-003

a) Armenia / b) Constitutional Court / c)  / d) 16-12-2002 / e) DCC-401 / f) On the conformity with the Constitution of obligations set forth in the Protocol on the Accession of the Republic of Armenia to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), in the attached schedules and in the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organisation / g) Tegekagir (Official Gazette) / h) ..

 

Keywords of the Systematic Thesaurus:

 
 
3.25

General Principles - Market economy.

4.4.1.5

Institutions - Head of State - Powers - International relations.

4.5.2.1

Institutions - Legislative bodies - Powers - Competences with respect to international agreements.


Keywords of the alphabetical index:

 

World Trade Organisation, accession, obligations / Trade agreement, international, constitutionality, assessment.

 

Headnotes:

 

By joining the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Armenia has not made a commitment to amend national legislation, but to guarantee the irreversibility of the structural and legislative reforms implemented in order to further the development of the market economy and free economic competition. Thus, concrete guarantees have been established in the framework of the WTO, with the aim of achieving mutually beneficial and friendly co-operation between states, in accordance with [ENG-ARM-A-9] Article 9 of the Constitution and international law norms. The fulfilment of these commitments, taken on in the framework of the WTO Agreement, does not constitute an obstacle to the fulfilment of other international commitments taken on by Armenia in the field of trade.

 

Summary:

 

On the basis of an appeal lodged by the President of the Republic, the Constitutional Court considered the conformity with the Constitution of the commitments set forth in the Protocol on the Accession of the Republic of Armenia to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), in the schedules attached to the Protocol and in the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organisation ("the WTO Agreement").

 

The Court found, inter alia, that in the report it presented to the General Council of the WTO as part of the accession process laid down in Article XII of the WTO Agreement, the WTO Accession Working Party noted the important measures taken by Armenia and directed towards the improvement of the mechanisms of legal regulation in the various fields of economic activity that are necessary for accession to the WTO, according to the current requirements of the WTO. Such measures have been taken in accordance with the schedule determined by Armenia and aimed at improving the legislation governing a number of areas, in particular customs, tax, banking, bankruptcy, the regulation of economic activity and licensing of some kinds of economic activity, land, trade, pricing, privatisation, criminal and civil matters, advertising activities, judicial protection of economic activity and certain other fields.

 

As a result of the realisation of these measures, the Working Party found, favourable conditions had been created for the further development and equal legal protection of the market economy, free economic competition and all kinds of property, as well as for the creation of the conditions and legal grounds for the fuller integration of the Republic of Armenia into the world economy.

 

Based on the announcement of the official representative of the President of the Republic, the Court noted that Armenia did not subscribe to the voluntary multilateral trade agreements at this stage.

 

The Court further stated that within the framework of the WTO Agreement, Armenia had taken on some obligations, which are set forth in the WTO Agreement and obligatory multilateral trade agreements, as well as in the Report of the Working Party to which the draft Protocol of Accession is attached, and in the Annexes to the Report of the Working Party containing the Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods, the Schedule of Specific Commitments on Services, the list of products subject to mandatory conformity assessment, the list of VAT exemptions, and information on export subsidies and internal assistance. These obligations and commitments mostly concern privatisation, pricing and tariff policies, judicial and extra-judicial protection of economic activity, domestic and foreign trade, legal regulation of goods in transit, customs, tax and criminal legislation and information on the legislation, licensing and certification of goods or services, investment-promoting policies and the management of state-owned companies, as well as economic policy, industry financing and state purchase fields.

 

In its decision, the Court noted the importance of the fact that the fulfilment of the above-mentioned obligations, taken on within the framework of the WTO Agreement, did not constitute an obstacle to the fulfilment of other international obligations taken on by Armenia in the field of trade, because, as stated in the Report of the Working Party, Armenia, especially in the framework of the CIS, realises free trade policy without customs duties or the implementation of unjustified obstacles in the field of imports and exports. The obligations taken on by Armenia under other bilateral and multilateral trade and economic treaties also do not obstruct the commitments taken on in the context of accession to the WTO.

 

The Court found that the obligations laid down in the Protocol on the Accession of the Republic of Armenia to the World Trade Organisation, in its attached schedules and in the WTO Agreement were in conformity with the Constitution.

 

Languages:

 

Armenian.