13. pants

Nobeiguma noteikumi

1. Šis nolīgums stājas spēkā pēc 30 (trīsdesmit) dienām,

kad depozitārijs pa diplomātiskajiem kanāliem būs saņēmis pēdējo

rakstisko paziņojumu par to, ka ir izpildītas nepieciešamās

nacionālās juridiskās prasības, lai šis nolīgums stātos spēkā.

Depozitārijs informē Puses par katru saņemto paziņojumu un šā

nolīguma spēkā stāšanās datumu.

2. Šā nolīguma spēkā stāšanās dienā spēku zaudē

2001. gada 4. jūnijā parakstītā Latvijas Republikas

valdības un Igaunijas Republikas valdības vienošanās par

savstarpējo palīdzību katastrofu gadījumos.

3. Šā nolīguma spēkā stāšanās dienā spēku zaudē

2001. gada 31. maijā parakstītais Latvijas Republikas

valdības un Lietuvas Republikas valdības līgums par savstarpēju

palīdzību dabas katastrofu un citos plaša mēroga nelaimes

gadījumos.

4. Šis nolīgums ir noslēgts uz nenoteiktu laiku. Jebkura Puse

var denonsēt šo nolīgumu, nosūtot rakstisku paziņojumu

depozitārijam, kas pa diplomātiskajiem kanāliem informē pārējās

Puses par katru šādu paziņojumu un par tā saņemšanas datumu.

Denonsēšana stājas spēkā dienā, kad ir pagājuši 6 (seši)

mēneši pēc dienas, kurā depozitārijs saņem attiecīgo paziņojumu.

Gadījumā, ja kāda no Pusēm denonsē šo nolīgumu, tas zaudē spēku

attiecībā uz šo konkrēto Pusi.

5. Jebkura Puse jebkurā laikā var ierosināt grozījumus šajā

nolīgumā. Pieprasījumu adresē depozitārijam, kas pa

diplomātiskajiem kanāliem informē pārējās Puses par katru šādu

paziņojumu un tā saņemšanas datumu. Šādi grozījumi stājas spēkā

atbilstoši šā nolīguma 13. panta pirmajai daļai.

Sagatavots 2017. gada 23. novembrī Viļņā trīs eksemplāros,

katrs no tiem ir latviešu, igauņu, lietuviešu un angļu valodā.

Eksemplāru redakcijas ir vienlīdz autentiskas. Šā nolīguma

noteikumu atšķirīgas interpretācijas gadījumā augstāks spēks ir

redakcijai angļu valodā.

Latvijas Republikas valdības

vārdā

Rihards Kozlovskis

iekšlietu ministrs

Igaunijas Republikas valdības

vārdā

Andres Anvelt

iekšlietu ministrs

Lietuvas Republikas valdības

vārdā

Eimutis Misiūnas

iekšlietu ministrs

AGREEMENT

BETWEEN

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA,

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA

AND

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA

ON MUTUAL ASSISTANCE AND COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF DISASTER

PREVENTION, PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE

The Government of the Republic of Latvia, the Government of

the Republic of Estonia and the Government of the Republic of

Lithuania, hereinafter referred to as the Parties:

being convinced of the need for cooperation between

three Baltic States in the event of a natural or man-made

disaster to protect people, the environment and property,

including cultural heritage;

wishing to further improve their cooperation through

this Agreement, which can be regarded as a framework agreement to

be supplemented as appropriate with other trilateral agreements

and arrangements;

mindful of the commitments imposed on the European

Union Member States by the Decision of the European Parliament

and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on a Union Civil

Protection Mechanism (1313/2013/EU);

without prejudice to any present or future bilateral or

trilateral agreements or other forms of cooperation in the field

of disaster prevention, preparedness and response,

have agreed as follows:

Article 1

Definitions

The terms in the present Agreement shall have the following

meaning:

a) disaster - any situation which has or may have a

severe impact on people, the environment, or property, including

cultural heritage;

b) response - any action taken upon request for

assistance under the present Agreement in the event of an

imminent disaster, or during or after a disaster, to address its

immediate adverse consequences;

c) preparedness - a state of readiness and capability

of human and material means, structures, communities and

organisations enabling them to ensure an effective rapid response

to a disaster, obtained as a result of action taken in

advance;

d) prevention - any action aimed at reducing risks or

mitigating adverse consequences of a disaster for people, the

environment and property, including cultural heritage;

e) early warning - the timely and effective provision

of information that allows action to be taken to avoid or reduce

risks and the adverse impacts of a disaster, and to facilitate

preparedness for an effective response;

f) host nation support - any action undertaken in the

preparedness and response phases by requesting or assisting

Party, to remove foreseeable obstacles to international

assistance offered under this Agreement. It includes support from

transit country to facilitate the transiting of this assistance

through their territory;

g) response capacity - assistance that may be provided

under the present Agreement upon request;

h) Competent Authority - the national authority or

authorities designated by the Party for the practical development

and implementation of the collaboration within the framework of

this Agreement, including matters related to requests for

assistance and decisions to render assistance;

i) requesting Party - Party, whose Competent

Authorities request assistance from another Party;

j) assisting Party - Party, whose Competent Authorities

comply with a request of assistance from another Party;

k) response team - organised group of specialists

(experts) of the assisting Party, assigned for rendering

assistance and having the necessary equipment;

l) transit country - Party, whose territory is to be

traversed by response teams and/or individual experts as well as

equipment and air supplies carried by them whose destination is

to reach the requesting Party.

Article 2

Scope of Agreement

1. This Agreement shall apply to cooperation in the field of

rescue services in disaster prevention, preparedness and response

and to mutual assistance in the event of a disaster or an

imminent threat thereof, which may by its nature exceed the

capacity of national resources of a Party and its capability to

handle the disaster or to respond to it. The primary aim of the

Agreement is to protect people, environment and property.

2. The present Agreement does not apply to the events of

natural disasters and large-scales accidents occurring in sea

waters under the jurisdiction of the states of the Parties.

Article 3

Competent Authorities and Points of Contact

1. The Parties shall designate one or more Competent

Authorities for the purposes of this Agreement. The Competent

Authorities are:

1) In the Republic of Lithuania:

The Ministry of the Interior,

Fire and Rescue Department under the Ministry of the

Interior;

2) In the Republic of Latvia:

The Ministry of the Interior,

Latvian State Fire and Rescue Service;

3) In the Republic of Estonia:

The Ministry of the Interior,

Estonian Rescue Board.

2. The Competent Authorities shall also appoint 24-hour

Point(s) of Contact for submitting and receiving early warnings

and requests for assistance. The Competent Authorities shall

inform each other of Point(s) of Contact.

3. The Competent Authorities shall inform each other without

delay of any changes to the Competent Authorities and Point(s) of

Contact.

Article 4

Disaster notification

1. In the event of a disaster or imminent threat thereof,

which might require assistance from another Party, a Party may

issue a request for assistance indicating the scope and type of

assistance as specifically as possible. The Party, to whom the

request for assistance is directed, shall promptly decide and

inform the requesting Party and, if appropriate, transit country

whether it is in a position to render the requested assistance

and indicate the scope and terms of the assistance including the

estimated costs of the assistance, if appropriate. The

Competent Authorities may agree on common procedures for

requesting assistance.

2. If a disaster or imminent threat thereof is likely to have

an impact on other Parties, the Party of the State, where this

disaster has taken or is likely to take place, shall send to

other Parties an early warning, describing the situation and its

potential development.

Article 5

Mutual assistance

1. The Parties shall cooperate to facilitate the prompt

provision of assistance.

2. The requesting Party has the overall command, control,

coordination and supervision of the rendering of assistance

within its State territory. The personnel from the assisting

Party serve in the State territory of the requesting Party under

the command of their own leaders and in accordance with the

service regulations and other legislation in force in their own

state, without prejudice to the laws and other legal acts of the

requesting Party.

3. The acceptance of assistance by the requesting Party is

considered as a formal invitation, which grants the permission

for the response capacity of the assisting Party to enter the

State territory of the requesting Party and cross its border

without formalities unless the assisting response capacity

includes military personnel, vehicles, vessels or aircraft,

equipment or goods, which require special permission to cross the

State border. In such a case the Competent Authorities of the

requesting Party, the assisting Party, and the transit country

shall cooperate with a view to obtaining such permission as soon

as possible, and no State border shall be crossed until the

necessary permission has been granted by the requesting Party

and, if appropriate, the transit country.

4. With the view of a prompt and effective assistance, the

Parties shall obligate themselves to ensure and the Competent

Authorities of the requesting Party shall mediate that personnel

engaged in rendering assistance may cross the State border of the

requesting Party and response capacity is exempted from taxes,

duties or other fees.

5. Response capacity may be used in accordance with the

national regulations of the assisting Party without the need to

apply for any specific authorisation. After the operations have

been completed, all response capacity, except for equipment that

is useless or damaged, shall be transported out of the State

territory of the requesting Party as soon as possible. The

exported response capacity shall be exempted from all taxes,

duties or other fees. The above shall also apply to relief

operations exercises.

Article 6

Procedures and plans

The Parties shall jointly take measures, such as elaborate

mutual procedures and plans for cross-border rescue operations,

to facilitate the rendering and transit of assistance,

cooperation during an operation, and host nation support.

Article 7

Other cooperative measures

1. Other cooperation includes exchange of information on

results of research and development programmes and on experience

of disasters. Cooperation may also cover common training,

exercises, exchange of experts, seminars or workshops, and

projects aimed at disaster prevention and preparedness.

2. If any or all Parties wish to establish a joint response

capacity, it should be regulated by a separate agreement signed

by the Competent Authorities or other responsible authorities

within the scope of their competence.

Article 8

Implementation and follow-up of Agreement

1. The Competent Authorities convene a meeting at least once

in two years to monitor the implementation of the Agreement,

analyse future actions and draw up plans for further development

of cooperation in accordance with Articles 6 and 7.

2. The Competent Authorities give detailed guidance on and

adopt the procedure for disaster notification (Article 4) and

mutual assistance (Article 5).

Article 9

Reimbursement of costs

1. The requesting Party shall not reimburse the costs incurred

by the assisting Party during rescue works or operations,

including the costs related to partial or total wear and tear or

loss of the brought-in equipment. In certain cases, considering

the type and extent of a disaster, the Competent Authorities may

determine which costs shall be borne by the requesting Party and

may decide on the terms and conditions and the manner in which

these costs shall be reimbursed. The following costs shall be

considered to be the costs related to rendering of

assistance:

a) insurance of persons and equipment;

b) exploitation, damage or loss of the brought-in

equipment;

c) use of aid supplies; and

d) costs of medical assistance provided to members of response

teams, also reimbursement of the costs for the damage

suffered.

Unless it has been agreed otherwise, the costs shall be

reimbursed immediately after the submission of an appropriate

request.

2. The assisting Party is entitled to claim from the

requesting Party the reimbursement of half of the costs related

to the use of aircraft. In this case the costs shall be

determined according to the tariffs valid at the time of

rendering assistance in the State territory of the assisting

Party.

3. Upon running out of stock, response teams and/or individual

experts of the assisting Party during the whole period of their

stay in the State territory of the requesting Party shall be

supplied at the expense of the requesting Party with food,

accommodation, and appliances for personal use. If needed, they

shall be supplied with necessary medical assistance, provided

with vehicles and other resources required in their work.

Article 10

Liability and indemnity

1. The Parties shall follow the requesting Party's national

laws and other legal acts regulating matters of liability and

indemnity, inasmuch as it is in compliance with the relevant

provisions of international law. This provision shall not prevent

the Parties from following international law in liability

matters.

2. The requesting Party is responsible for damage caused to a

third party by the assistance rendered within the State territory

of the requesting Party. The requesting Party has a right to

recourse action against the assisting Party for costs which it

has paid pursuant to this Article if a member of the response

team has been proved to have caused damage through wilful

misconduct or gross negligence.

3. Each Party shall renounce all compensations against the

State of the other Party in case of death of, or injury to, the

response team's members, or damage to their health or personal

effects if these have occurred in connection with the duties

carried out to implement this Agreement. The assisting Party

shall insure the members of its response teams in accordance with

its national regulations in force.

Article 11

Settlement of disputes

All disputes regarding the interpretation or implementation of

this Agreement shall be settled by negotiation between the

Parties.

Article 12

Depositary

The Government of the Republic of Estonia shall act as the

official Depository for this Agreement.

Article 13

Final provisions

1. This Agreement shall enter into force 30 (thirty) days

after the Depository has received through diplomatic channels the

last written notification stating that the necessary national

legal requirements for this Agreement to enter into force have

been completed. The Depository shall inform the Parties of each

notification received and the entry into force date of this

Agreement.

2. On the date of entering into force of this Agreement, the

Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Latvia and

the Government of the Republic of Estonia on mutual assistance in

the event of disasters signed on 4 June 2001 ceases to be in

force.

3. On the date of entering into force of this Agreement, the

Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Latvia and

the Government of the Republic of Lithuania on the mutual support

in the event of natural disasters and other large-scale accidents

signed on 31 May 2001 ceases to be in force.

4. This Agreement is concluded for an unlimited period of

time. It may be denounced by any of the Parties by written

notification to the Depository, which shall notify the other

Parties through diplomatic channels each such notification and

the date of the receipt thereof. The denunciation shall take

effect 6 (six) months after the receipt of the notification by

the Depository. In case of denunciation of this Agreement by any

of the Parties, it shall cease to be in effect regarding that

specific Party.

5. Any of the Parties may initiate amendments to this

Agreement at any time. The request shall be addressed to the

Depository, which shall notify through diplomatic channels the

other Parties of each such notification and the date of the

receipt thereof. Such amendments shall come into force pursuant

to paragraph 1 of Article 13 of this Agreement.

Done in Vilnius, on 23.11.2017, in three copies, each in the

Latvian, Estonian, Lithuanian and English languages. All texts

shall be equally authentic. In case of any divergence in

interpretation of this Agreement, the English text shall

prevail.

For the Government of the

Republic of Latvia

Rihards Kozlovskis

Minister of the Interior

For the Government of the

Republic of Estonia

Andres Anvelt

Minister of the Interior

For the Government of the

Republic of Lithuania

Eimutis Misiūnas

Minister of the Interior