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TREATY ESTABLISHING A CONSTITUTION FOR EUROPE
PART-III: THE POLICIES AND FUNCTIONING OF THE UNION
TITLE-V: THE UNION'S EXTERNAL ACTION
CHAPTER-II: COMMON FOREIGN AND SECURITY POLICY
SECTION-1: COMMON PROVISIONS
ARTICLE III-300
ARTICLE III-300
1.
The European decisions referred to in this Chapter shall be adopted by the Council acting unanimously.
When abstaining in a vote, any member of the Council may qualify its abstention by making a formal declaration. In that case, it shall not be obliged to apply the European decision, but shall accept that the latter commits the Union. In a spirit of mutual solidarity, the Member State concerned shall refrain from any action likely to conflict with or impede Union action based on that decision and the other Member States shall respect its position. If the members of the Council qualifying their abstention in this way represent at least one third of the Member States comprising at least one third of the population of the Union, the decision shall not be adopted.
2.
By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the Council shall act by a qualified majority:
(a) when adopting European decisions defining a Union action or position on the basis of a European decision of the European Council relating to the Union's strategic interests and objectives, as referred to in Article III-293(1);
(b) when adopting a European decision defining a Union action or position, on a proposal which the Union Minister for Foreign Affairs has presented following a specific request to him or her from the European Council, made on its own initiative or that of the Minister;
(c) when adopting a European decision implementing a European decision defining a Union action or position;
(d) when adopting a European decision concerning the appointment of a special representative in accordance with Article III-302.
If a member of the Council declares that, for vital and stated reasons of national policy, it intends to oppose the adoption of a European decision to be adopted by a qualified majority, a vote shall not be taken. The Union Minister for Foreign Affairs will, in close consultation with the Member State involved, search for a solution acceptable to it. If he or she does not succeed, the Council may, acting by a qualified majority, request that the matter be referred to the European Council for a European decision by unanimity.
3. In accordance with Article I-40(7) the European Council may unanimously adopt a European decision stipulating that the Council shall act by a qualified majority in cases other than those referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article.
4. Paragraphs 2 and 3 shall not apply to decisions having military or defence implications.