Ref. Ares(2020)2879241 - 04/06/2020
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR RESEARCH & INNOVATION
Directorate B - Common Implementation Centre
B.1 - Common Legal Support Service
Head of Unit
B1/RS/JCV
rtd.b.1.002(2020)3293075
By registered letter with
acknowledgment of receipt
Mr Freek Terberg
Adenauerlaan 79
3527RB Utrecht
The Netherlands
Advance copy by e-mail: ask+request-7744-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Your application for public access to documents – GestDem Ref No
2020/1733
Dear Mr Terberg,
We refer to your email dated 09/03/2020, addressed to the European External Action
Service, in which you submitted an application for public access to documents within the
framework of Regulation (EC) 1049/20011. As you were informed, part of your request,
and more specifically the point referring to the EU-China Science and technology
Agreement, has been assigned to the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation.
Following the confirmation of your address, your request was registered by our
Directorate on 26/03/2020, under reference GestDem 2020/1733.
1. SCOPE OF YOUR REQUEST
You requested access to the following documents:
“[…]
final reports (of meetings), minutes, joint statements, press releases and
Memoranda of Understanding produced by or concerning these dialogues. The missing
policy dialogues:
[…]
4. EU-China Science and technology Agreement (from establishment - until now)
[…].
1 Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding
public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents (OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43).
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
Email:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
We have identified six documents matching the criteria of your request (hereinafter the
“
requested documents), and more specifically:
1. The minutes of the 9th Steering Committee meeting of the EU-China Science and
Technology agreement, held on 22/03/2011.
2. The minutes of the 10th Steering Committee meeting of the EU-China Science
and Technology agreement, held on 16/11/2012.
3. The Joint Summary Conclusions of the 11th EU-China Joint Steering Committee
on Science and Technology Cooperation, held on 12/06/2014.
4. The joint conclusions of the 12th China-EU Joint Steering Committee on S& T
Cooperation, held on 30/10/2015.
5. The conclusions of the13th EU-China Joint Steering Committee on Science and
Technology Cooperation Joint Summary, held on 29/03/2017.
6. The minutes of the 14th Meeting of the EU-China Joint Steering Committee on
S&T Cooperation, held on 13/12/2018.
2. EXAMINATION UNDER REGULATION (EC) NO 1049/2001
We are pleased to inform you that partial access can be granted to the requested
documents. Please note that personal data has been expunged, where necessary, in
accordance with the exception provided under Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001, as explained below:
Protection of privacy and the integrity of the individual
According to Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, access must be refused
where disclosure would undermine the protection of "
privacy and the integrity of the
individual", in particular in accordance with European Union legislation regarding the
protection of personal data2.
The requested documents contain information which constitutes personal data in the
meaning of Article 3(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725. Such data are the names or
information leading to the identification of third parties and of the Commission’s
officials not having the function of senior management staff, as well as handwritten
signatures.
Pursuant to Article 9(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725, personal data shall only be
transmitted to recipients established in the Union other than Union institutions and bodies
if
“[t]he recipient establishes that it is necessary to have the data transmitted for a
specific purpose in the public interest and the controller, where there is any reason to
assume that the data subject’s legitimate interests might be prejudiced, establishes that it
is proportionate to transmit the personal data for that specific purpose after having
demonstrably weighed the various competing interests”.
2 Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the
protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions,
bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No
45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC (OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39).
2
The European Commission has to examine the further conditions for a lawful processing
of personal data only if the first condition is fulfilled, namely if the recipient has
established that it is necessary to have the data transmitted for a specific purpose in the
public interest. In your request, you do not put forward any arguments to establish the
necessity to have the data transmitted for a specific purpose in the public interest.
Therefore, personal data has been withheld from the requested documents.
3. DISCLAIMER AND RE-USE OF THE DOCUMENTS
You may reuse the disclosed documents free of charge, for non-commercial and
commercial purposes, provided that the source is acknowledged, that you do not distort
the original meaning or message of the documents. Please note that the Commission does
not assume liability stemming from the reuse.
4. MEANS OF REDRESS
Should you wish this position to be reconsidered, in accordance with Article 7(2) of
Regulation (EC) 1049/2001, you are entitled to present in writing, within fifteen working
days from receipt of this letter, a confirmatory application to the Commission's
Secretary-General at the following address:
European Commission
Secretary-General
Unit SG C.1 – Transparency, document management & access to documents
BERL 7/076
B-1049 Brussels
or by email t
o: xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Yours sincerely,
Reinhard Schulte
Enclosure: the requested documents, expunged from personal data.
3
Electronically signed on 02/06/2020 19:27 (UTC+02) in accordance with article 4.2 (Validity of electronic documents) of Commission Decision 2004/563
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