The European Commission has made the export of certain medical products subject to an export authorisation for 6 weeks starting from 15 March.
Protective equipment—goggles and visors, face shields, mouth and nose protection such as masks, gloves and other protective clothing—may no longer be exported outside of the EU, including EFTA countries, without prior authorisation.
“The production of personal protective equipment such as mouth protection masks is concentrated in a limited number of Member States, namely the Czech Republic, France, Germany and Poland”, the European Commission explains in its Regulation. “The current level of EU production and existing stock levels will not be sufficient to meet demand within the Union”, it said, pointing out that “demand is increasing due to the epidemic situation” and that “shortages ... are emerging in several Member States”.
Depending on the needs of the Member States, exports of these items may be authorised “in special circumstances”, such as providing assistance to non-Member States, it is also stated.
Depending on the seriousness of the situation, the EU has not excluded extending the scope of this measure.
Legality in relation to WTO rules
Export restrictions are, in theory, banned by the World Trade Organization (WTO). Nevertheless, exceptions for “essential products” (GATT Article XI:2 a), under the objectives of protecting human life and health (set out in Article XX b), may justify such measures.
In recent days, the question of autonomy of production of certain essential products (see EUROPE 12444/13) has become acute for many Member States, a question that has been exacerbated by (illegal) restrictions on trade within the single market (see EUROPE 12446/1, 12441/1 and other articles).
These measures have also caused concern among some of the European Union's close trading partners, such as Serbia. Its President, Aleksandar Vucic, vilified the lack of solidarity of the Union, turning to Beijing where he called for their support.
To consult the Regulations: https://bit.ly/33nHIPJ (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)