Document 23
Ref. Ares(2020)587318 - 30/01/2020
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Brussels, 23.11.2018
C(2018) 8002 final
Belgium
DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 4 OF THE
IMPLEMENTING RULES TO REGULATION (EC) N° 1049/20011
Subject:
Your confirmatory application for access to documents under
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 - GESTDEM 2018/4731
Dear
,
I refer to your e-mail of 22 October 2018, registered on the same day, in which you
submit a confirmatory application in accordance with Article 7(2) of Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission
documents2 (hereafter ‘Regulation (EC) 1049/2001’).
In your initial application of 7 September 2018, you requested access to:
‘– all briefing materials supplied to Mr Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission
president, on strengthening the defence industry, between 1 November 2014 and
7 September 2018. By “briefing materialsˮ, I mean documents drawn up by the EU's own
officials and advisers on this topic and supplied to Mr Juncker or member of his Cabinet;
– minutes and internal reports of all discussions held by Mr Jean-Claude Juncker
(including members of his cabinet) on strengthening the defence industry between
1 November 2014 and 7 September 2018. This should include both meetings between
Mr Juncker (including members of his cabinet) and EU officials and meetings between
Mr Juncker (including members of his cabinet) and outside parties with an interest in the
defence industry.’
According to the wording used in your application you are interested in briefing
materials, minutes and internal reports of all discussions held by Mr Jean-Claude Juncker
relating to ʻstrengthening the defence industryʼ.
1
Official Journal L 345 of 29.12.2001, p. 94.
2
Official Journal L 145 of 31.5.2001, p. 43.
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
Directorate H of the Secretariat-General of the European Commission, in its initial reply
dated 19 October 2018, informed you that it did not hold any documents corresponding
to the wording of your request reproduced above.
Through your confirmatory application, you request a review of this position. In
particular, you specify that you ʻdo not find the explanation in any way convincingʼ and
ask the Secretary-General to ʻexamine [your] request once more, to identify the
documents [you] have requested and to provide [you] with them as soon as possible.ʼ
Following your confirmatory application, the European Commission has carried out
a renewed, thorough search for the documents requested concerning the topic you have
indicated in your initial application - ʻ
strengthening the defence industryʼ. Based on this
renewed search, I confirm that the European Commission has not identified any
documents held by it that would fall under the scope of your application for access to
documents.
As specified in Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) 1049/2001, the right of access as defined
in that Regulation applies only to existing documents in the possession of the institution.
Given that no such documents falling under the scope of your application have been
identified at the confirmatory stage, the European Commission is not in a position to
handle your confirmatory application.
Finally, I would like to draw your attention to the means of redress that are available
against this decision. You may either bring proceedings before the General Court or file
a complaint with the Ombudsman under the conditions specified respectively in Articles
263 and 228 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Yours sincerely,
For the European Commission
Martin SELMAYR
Secretary-General
2