9.2.94 Official Journal of the European Communities No L 38/1 (Acts whose publication is obligatory) COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 261/94 of 24 January. 1994 opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas and ceilings and establishing Community surveillance for certain fish and fishery products originating in the Faroe Islands (1994) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 113 thereof, Having regard to Council Decision 91/668/EEC of 2 December 1991 concerning the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Economic Community, the Government of Denmark and the Home Government - of the Faroe Islands (1), Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, Whereas Articles 3 and 8 of the abovementioned Decision provide that customs duties applicable to imports into the Community of Ten of certain fish and fishery products listed in Protocol 1 attached to the said Decision will be abolished on 1 January 1992; whereas the abolition is subject to Community tariff quotas and ceilings and, for some of these products, Community statistical surveillance; whereas the said Community tariff quotas and ceilings in respect of products originating in the Faroe Islands should therefore be opened from 1 January 1992 for the volumes indicated respectively in Annexes I and II and Community statistical surveillance should be established in respect of the products listed in Annex I Whereas the preferential rates of duty indicated in Annexes I, IT and III apply only where the free-at-frontier price determined by the Member States in accordance with Article 22 of Regulation (EEC) No 3759/92 of 17 December 1992 on the common organization of the (1) O] No L 371, 31. 12. 1991, p. 1. market in fishery products and acquaculture (2) is at least equal to the reference price set, or to be set, by the Community for the products or categories of products concerned; . Whereas equal and continuous access to the quotas in respect of the products listed in Annex I should be ensured for all Community importers and the rates of duty laid down for the quotas should be applied consistently to all imports of the products in question in all Member States until the quotas are exhausted; Whereas the decision for the opening, in the execution of its international obligations, of tariff quotas should be taken by the Community; whereas, to ensure the efficiency of a common administration of these quotas, there is no reasonable obstacle to authorizing the Member States to draw from the quota-volumes the necessary quantities corresponding to actual imports; whereas this method of administration requires close cooperation between the Member States and the Commission and the latter must in particular be able to monitor the rate at which the quotas are used up and inform the Member States accordingly; Whereas the Kingdom of Belgium, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg are joined in, and represented by, the Benelux economic union; whereas any operation concerning the administration of the quotas may therefore be carried out by one of its members; Whereas, in respect of products listed in Annex II and subject to Community tariff ceilings, Community surveillance may be effected by charging imports of these products against the ceilings at Community level as and (2) O] No L 388, 31. 12. 1992, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1891/93 (O] No L 172, 15. 7. 1993, p. 1).