The Commission's Interpretative Communication on the Application of Article 296 EC in the Field of Defence Procurement

Abstract

Article 296 EC (now Article 346 TFEU) allows EU Member States to derogate from EU internal market rules when their essential security interests are at stake. For a number of years this provision has been interpreted quite widely by Member States to the extent that it was thought that national defence markets and defence procurement were completely and automatically exempted from EU rules. The Interpretative Communication (COM (2006) 779 final) tries to clarify the Commission’s position regarding the application of this controversial provision in the field of defence procurement. The present article provides a critical analysis of the Commission’s Interpretative Communication.

Keywords: Defence procurement, Article 346 TFEU, armaments acquisitions, procurement regulation, European integration, EU defence market, competition

JEL Classification: F52, F59, H56, H57, K12, K23, K49