Faced with an “evolving” situation, the European Commission reviewed and corrected, on Friday 20 March, certain elements of its regulation making the export of certain medical equipment subject to authorisation (see EUROPE 12447/7).
From Saturday 21 March, glasses and visors, face shields, mouth and nose protection, masks, gloves and other protective clothing may continue to be exported without authorisation to the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), i.e. Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. A similar exemption is granted to Andorra, the Faeroe Islands, San Marino and the Vatican and associated countries and territories.
The Commission has also clarified its intentions. The 15 March decision had indeed been the subject of much criticism, particularly on the question of the equipment needs that developing countries might face in order to combat the pandemic.
In a guidance note for Member States, the European institution thus emphasises that export authorisations can continue as long as the availability of medical equipment is not threatened.
It also recalls that the European Chancelleries enjoy a margin of discretion for specific circumstances, inviting them to take into consideration certain elements, such as requests from non-Member States or international organisations to the Union Civil Protection Mechanism, support for the activities of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) and support for actions coordinated by the Integrated Political Crisis Response (IPCR) mechanism.
The Commission also specifies that the provisions on emergency supplies should extend to the provision of equipment for the emergency operations of humanitarian organisations in non-Member States. See:
- the amendment to the regulation: https://bit.ly/2x9W3Dc
- the annex with exempted countries: https://bit.ly/2U7JzVO
- guidelines for Member States: https://bit.ly/33A1XcR (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)