2006/697/EC: Council Decision of 27 June 2006 on the signing of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway on the surrender procedure between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway

• Published date: 21 October 2006
• Subject Matter: Justice and home affairs,External relations
• Official Gazette Publication: Official Journal of the European Union, L 292, 21 October 2006

21.10.2006 EN Official Journal of the European Union L 292/1

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COUNCIL DECISION

of 27 June 2006

on the signing of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway on the surrender procedure between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway

(2006/697/EC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union and in particular Articles 24 and 38 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) The European Union is determined to improve judicial cooperation in criminal matters between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway, without prejudice to the rules protecting individual freedom.

(2) Following the Council Decision of 10 July 2001 authorising the Presidency of the Council to negotiate Agreements with Norway and Iceland on judicial cooperation in criminal matters on the basis of Articles 24 and 38 of the Treaty on European Union, which was amended by the Council Decision of 19 December 2002, the Presidency, assisted by the Commission, negotiated an agreement on the surrender procedure between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The signing of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway on the surrender procedure between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway is hereby approved on behalf of the European Union, subject to its conclusion.

The text of the Agreement and the declarations to be made upon the signing of the Agreement are attached to this Decision.

Article 2

The President of the Council is hereby authorised to designate the person(s) empowered to sign the Agreement subject to its conclusion.

Article 3

This Decision and the Agreement attached thereto shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Luxembourg, 27 June 2006.

For the Council

The President

J. PRÖLL

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AGREEMENT

between the European Union and the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway on the surrender procedure between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway

THE EUROPEAN UNION,

on the one hand, and

THE REPUBLIC OF ICELAND

and

THE KINGDOM OF NORWAY,

on the other hand,

hereinafter referred to as ‘the Contracting Parties’,

WISHING to improve judicial cooperation in criminal matters between the Member States of the European Union and Iceland and Norway, without prejudice to the rules protecting individual freedom,

CONSIDERING that current relationships among the Contracting Parties require close cooperation in the fight against crime,

EXPRESSING their mutual confidence in the structure and functioning of their legal systems and in the ability of all Contracting Parties to guarantee a fair trial,

CONSIDERING that Iceland and Norway have expressed their wish to enter into an agreement enabling them to expedite arrangements for handing over suspects and convicts with the Member States of the European Union and to apply a surrender procedure with the Member States,

CONSIDERING that the European Union also considers it desirable to have such an agreement in place,

CONSIDERING that it is therefore appropriate to set up a system for such surrender procedure,

CONSIDERING that all Member States and the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland are parties to a number of conventions in the field of extradition, including the European Convention on extradition of 13 December 1957 and the European Convention on the suppression of terrorism of 27 January 1977. The Nordic States have uniform extradition laws with a common concept of extradition,

CONSIDERING that the level of cooperation under the EU Convention of 10 March 1995 on simplified extradition procedure and of the EU Convention of 27 September 1996 relating to extradition should be maintained where it is not possible to increase it,

CONSIDERING that decisions on the execution of the arrest warrant as defined by this Agreement must be subject to sufficient controls, which means that a judicial authority of the State where the requested person has been arrested should have to take the decision on his or her surrender,

CONSIDERING that the role of central authorities in the execution of an arrest warrant as defined by this Agreement should be limited to practical and administrative assistance,

CONSIDERING that this Agreement respects fundamental rights and in particular the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

This Agreement does not prevent a State from applying its constitutional rules relating to due process, freedom of association, freedom of the press, freedom of expression in other media and freedom fighters,

CONSIDERING that no person should be surrendered to a State where there is a serious risk that he or she would be subjected to the death penalty, torture or other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,

CONSIDERING that since all States have ratified the Council of Europe Convention of 28 January 1981 for the protection of individuals with regard to automatic processing of personal data, the personal data processed in the context of the implementation of this Agreement should be protected in accordance with the principles of the said Convention,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

CHAPTER 1

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

Article 1

Object and purpose

1. The Contracting Parties undertake to improve, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, the surrender for the purpose of prosecution or execution of sentence between, on the one hand, the Member States and, on the other hand, the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland, by taking account of, as minimum standards, the terms of the Convention of 27 September 1996 relating to extradition between the Member States of the European Union.

2. The Contracting Parties undertake, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, to ensure that the extradition system between, on the one hand, the Member States and, on the other hand, the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland shall be based on a mechanism of surrender pursuant to an arrest warrant in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

3. This Agreement shall not have the effect of modifying the obligation to respect fundamental rights and fundamental legal principles as enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights, or, in case of execution by the judicial authority of a Member State, of the principles referred to in Article 6 of the Treaty on European Union.

4. Nothing in this Agreement should be interpreted as prohibiting refusal to surrender a person in respect of whom an arrest warrant as defined by this Agreement has been issued when there are reasons to believe, on the basis of objective elements, that the said arrest warrant has been issued for the purpose of prosecuting or punishing a person on the grounds of his or her sex, race, religion, ethnic origin, nationality, language, political opinions or sexual orientation, or that that person's position may be prejudiced for any of these reasons.

Article 2

Definitions

1. ‘Contracting Parties’ shall mean the European Union and the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland.

2. ‘Member State’ shall mean a Member State of the European Union.

3. ‘State’ shall mean a Member State, the Kingdom of Norway or the Republic of Iceland.

4. ‘Third State’ shall mean any State other than a State as defined in paragraph 3.

5. ‘Arrest warrant’ shall mean a judicial decision issued by a State with a view to the arrest and surrender by another State of a requested person, for the purposes of conducting a criminal prosecution or executing a custodial sentence or detention order.

Article 3

Scope

1. An arrest warrant may be issued for acts punishable by the law of the issuing State by a custodial sentence or a detention order for a maximum period of at least 12 months or, where a sentence has been passed or a detention order has been made, for sentences of at least four months.

2. Without prejudice to paragraphs 3 and 4, surrender shall be subject to the condition that the acts for which the arrest warrant has been issued constitute an offence under the law of the executing State, whatever the constituent elements or however it is described.

3. Subject to Articles 4, 5(1)(b) to (g), 6, 7 and 8, in no case shall a State refuse to execute an arrest warrant issued in relation to the behaviour of any person who contributes to the commission by a group of persons acting with a common purpose of one or more offences in the field of terrorism referred to in Articles 1 and 2 of the European Convention on the Suppression of Terrorism and Articles 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the Framework Decision of 13 June 2002 on combating terrorism, illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, or murder, grievous bodily injury, kidnapping, illegal restraint, hostage-taking and rape, punishable by deprivation of liberty or a detention order of a maximum of at least 12 months, even where that person does not take part in the actual execution of the offence or offences concerned; such contribution shall be intentional and made with the further knowledge that his or her participation will contribute to the achievement of the organisation's criminal activities.

4. Norway and Iceland, on the one hand, and the EU, on behalf of any of its Member States, on the other hand may make a declaration to the effect that, on the basis of reciprocity, the condition of double criminality referred to in paragraph 2 shall not be applied under the conditions set out hereafter. The following offences, if they are punishable in the issuing State by a custodial sentence or a detention order for a maximum period of at least three years and as they are defined by the law of the issuing State, shall, under the terms of...