WTO Agreement on Agriculture

WTO AGREEMENT ON AGRICULTURE The domestic support systems in agriculture are governed by the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA), which entered into force in 1995 and was negotiated during the Uruguay Round (1986-1994). The long-term goal of the AoA is to establish a fair and market-oriented agricultural trading system and to initiate a reform process through the negotiations of commitments on support and protection, and through the establishment of strengthened and more operationally effective rules and discipline. Agriculture is therefore special because the sector has its own agreement, whose provisions prevail. LEGAL BASIS In regard to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), signed in Geneva in 1947, and the Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO), signed in Marrakesh in 1994 (OJ L 336, 23.12.1994), the European Union and its Member States act pursuant to Article 207 (common commercial policy) and Articles 217 and 218 (international agreements) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (5.2.2). EXTERNAL ASPECTS OF THE CAP — GENERAL FRAMEWORK The entire Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has been subject to WTO discipline since 1995, including a dispute settlement body (DSB) with a stringent procedure for disputes, which ensures that signatory states comply with the new multilateral rules. The CAP is also affected by agricultural concessions granted to a wide range of countries under several multilateral and bilateral agreements...