Key Benefits:
President of the Republic,
On the report of the Prime Minister and the Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Considering the Constitution, in particular articles 52 to 55;
Vu le Decree No. 53-192 of 14 March 1953 amended on the ratification and publication of international commitments undertaken by France,
Decrete:
The agreement between the Government of the French Republic and the Government of Georgia on the exchange and mutual protection of classified information (both annexes), signed in Tbilisi on 5 November 2012, will be published in the Official Journal of the French Republic.
The Prime Minister and the Minister for Foreign Affairs are responsible for the execution of this Order, which will be published in the Official Journal of the French Republic.
A C C O R D
BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FRANÇAISE REPUBLIC AND THE GOVERNMENT OF GEORGIA AND THE RECIPROCAL PROTECTION OF CLASSIVE INFORMATION (SEMBLE FOR SECOND ANNEXES)
The Government of the French Republic and the Government of Georgia (hereinafter referred to as "the Parties");
Having agreed to conduct discussions on political and security issues and to expand and strengthen their political, military and economic cooperation;
Taking into account developments in global policy and recognizing the important role of their mutual cooperation in the stabilization of peace, international security and mutual trust;
Recognizing that effective cooperation may require the exchange of classified information between Parties;
Wishing to ensure the mutual protection of classified information exchanged between Parties;
In mutual respect for the sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, security and interests of their States;
agreed on the following provisions.
Article 1
Object and scope
1. The purpose of this Agreement is to ensure the protection of classified information designated as such under this Agreement, in accordance with the legislation in force in the States of the Parties, and exchanged or generated in the context of cooperation between the Parties.
2. This Agreement shall apply to all activities, contracts, agreements or other documents containing classified information.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Agreement:
1. "Classified Information" means any oral or written information, regardless of its nature/registration medium, and any material or document containing information to which a degree of classification has been assigned and which, in the interest of national security and in accordance with the national laws and regulations of the Parties, require protection against any violation, destruction, diversion, disclosure, loss or unauthorized access, or any other form of compromise;
2. " Classified contract " means a contract (subcontract) between a Party and a contractor or between a contractor and a subcontractor, which contains classified information or on the basis of which such information is generated, reproduced or retained;
3. "contractor" means any legal entity with legal capacity to enter into a contract classified in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in this Agreement and the legislation in force in the States of the Parties and which is a party to that contract;
4. "Submission" means the total or partial disclosure of classified information to persons who do not have a security clearance or do not need to know it;
5. "Safety clearance" means a favourable decision following an investigation procedure to ensure the loyalty and reliability of an individual, as well as other security aspects in accordance with the legislation in force in the States of the Parties. This decision allows a person to be granted access to classified information and permission to process it; security clearances issued to natural persons are referred to as "individual security clearances" (HSI) and security clearances issued to legal persons are referred to as "Enhancement security clearance" (HSE);
6. "Need to know" means the principle that access to classified information can only be granted to persons who have a proven need to know this information for the purposes of the performance of their official functions in which such information has been communicated to the recipient Party;
7. "Tierce Party" means any entity that is not a party to this Agreement.
8. "People" means any natural or legal person;
9. "Part of Origin" means the Party, including any public or private institution subject to its national laws and regulations, which communicates classified information;
10. "Recipient Party" means the Party, including any public or private institution subject to its national laws and regulations, which receives classified information from the Party of origin;
11. "National Security Authority" (ANS) means the national authority responsible for the general control and implementation of this Agreement for each Party;
12. "Competent authorities" means any Designated Security Authority (DSA) or any other competent authority authorized in accordance with the respective national laws and regulations of the Parties, which is responsible for the implementation of this Agreement in accordance with the areas concerned.
Article 3
Competent authorities
1. The National Security Authority for each Party is:
For the French Party:
General Secretariat of Defence and National Security, 51, boulevard de La Tour-Maubourg, 75700 Paris 07 SP, FRANCE.
For the Georgian part:
Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, General Gia Gulua Str. #10, 0114 TBILISSI, GÉORGIE.
Parties shall be kept mutually informed of any changes to their National Security Authority and their competent authorities.
2. The competent NSAs and Authorities, each in the territory of their respective State, shall ensure the protection of classified information transmitted in accordance with this Agreement, in accordance with the legislation in force in their State and the provisions of this Agreement.
3. In order to maintain comparable security standards, each Party shall communicate to the other Party, upon request, information relating to the organization of its security system, its laws, regulations and procedures, and facilitate contacts between their respective NSOs and competent authorities.
Article 4
Equivalence of security classification levels
1. The classified information will be assigned one of the equivalent safety classification levels below:
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2. The French Republic treats and protects the Information bearing the mention
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transmitted by Georgia, in accordance with its existing national laws and regulations relating to protected but unclassified information bearing a reference such as "RESTREINT DIFFUSION".
3. Georgia treats and protects unclassified information but contains a statement indicating that it is protected such as "RESTREINT DIFFUSION" transmitted by the French Republic, in accordance with its existing national laws and regulations relating to the protection of information bearing the mention
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4. For specific security reasons, where the Party of origin requires that access to classified information be limited to persons who have the nationality or citizenship of the Parties, this information shall provide an additional warning "SPÉCIAL FRANCE GÉORGIE" or "SPÉCIAL GÉORGIE-FRANCE".
5. The NSAs or the Competent Authorities shall mutually form any additional security markings that may be exchanged or generated under this Agreement.
6. The recipient Party shall not declassify or declassify classified information without the prior written consent of the Party of origin.
Article 5
Protection of classified information
1. No one has the right to access classified information solely because of its hierarchical level, functions or security clearance. Access to classified information is restricted to persons who need to know it and who have security clearance in accordance with national laws and regulations in force in the State of the Party concerned.
2. The recipient Party shall not transmit classified information received under this Agreement to a third Party without the prior written authorization of the Party of origin.
3. The recipient Party shall grant classified information a level of protection not less strict than that granted to it by the Party of origin in accordance with the equivalence table in Article 4.
4. The recipient Party does not use classified information for purposes other than those for which it was transmitted.
5. The recipient Party shall protect, in accordance with its national laws and regulations, rights such as patents, copyrights or private, professional or commercial secrets contained in classified information.
Article 6
Security permits
1. The decision to grant security clearance to a person (individual security clearance – HSI) must comply with national laws and regulations in force in the State of the Party concerned and be based on the conclusions of a special investigation.
The decision to grant a security clearance to a contactant (establishment security clearance – HSE) must be in accordance with the national laws and regulations in force in the State of the Party concerned and be based on the conclusions of a special investigation.
2. Upon request, through their competent authorities, the Parties shall confirm by means of an attestation form (the model of an attestation form is set out in Appendix A, which is an integral part of this Agreement), the security clearance and the need to know of a person sent to the territory of the State of the other Party within the framework of this Agreement.
3. Parties shall mutually recognize security clearances issued to their nationals with respect to access to classified information.
4. National Security Authorities or Competent Authorities shall keep each other informed of any significant change in security clearances previously issued to persons during their participation in multiple visits or projects classified under this Agreement, including in the event of withdrawal or decommissioning of an enabling authority.
Article 7
Visits
1. The authorization to visit a facility located in the territory of a Party shall be granted only by that Party.
2. The visits of third-party nationals to the facilities of one of the Parties involving access to classified information exchanged or produced by the Parties, or to sites where access to such information is directly possible, require the prior written authorization of the ANO or the competent authorities of the other Party.
3. Prior to a visit to the other Party involving access to classified information or taking place in the building/place where classified information is generated, reproduced and/or retained, the authorization is exclusively granted on the basis of the need to know. This authorization is granted by the competent authorities of the Parties. At least three weeks before the scheduled visit, the Competent Authority of the Party shall inform the NO or the competent authority of the other Party concerned, the planned visit and the highest level of classified information to which the visitor may have access (in accordance with the form in Appendix B, which is an integral part of this Agreement).
4. All visitors must comply with national laws and regulations in force in the host State.
5. In the event of multiple visits, access to classified information is valid for a maximum period of 12 months.
Article 8
Physical security
1. Each Party shall be responsible for all classified information of the other Party throughout the period in which it is kept in the territory of its State.
2. The classified information shall be stored so that only persons authorized to have access to such information in accordance with this Agreement have access to it.
Article 9
Transmission of classified information
1. The classified information shall be transmitted between the Parties by diplomatic channels or by any other agreed means, protected against any breach of security. Upon such transmission, the recipient Party shall be responsible for the custody, control and security of classified information.
2. The minimum requirements for information security during transmission are:
(a) The documents are transmitted in a double sealed envelope. The inner envelope refers to the classification of documents, the registration number and address of the intended recipient organization and the external envelope, the address of the recipient organization, the address of the sender, and, where applicable, the registration number. The inner envelope is sealed with a security adhesive tape and contains the indicted reception. The outer envelope does not mention the classification of the documents contained. The sealed envelope is then transmitted in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the Parties;
(b) The material is carried in sealed and covered vehicles, or is placed in safe packaging or protection, and is maintained under permanent control to prevent any unauthorized person from having access to it;
(c) The equipment to be temporarily stored pending shipment is placed in secure and locked storage areas. These areas are protected by intrusion detection equipment or by guards with appropriate security clearance, which maintain permanent monitoring of the storage area. Only authorized personnel with the required security clearance have access to the storage area;
(d) A document such as a letter certificate or a transport plan shall be prepared for transmissions referred to in paragraphs a to c. above. Receipt charges are obtained whenever classified information changes hands on the way and an acknowledgement of receipt is signed by the final consignee and returned to the sender;
(e) The classified information shall not be transmitted in clear by electronic means. The use of nationally registered cryptographic systems (at the appropriate level) is mandatory for electronic transmission of classified information.
Article 10
Management and control of classified information
1. Parties develop procedures for the protection of information security and access authorization to ensure the management and control of classified information.
2. Any entity located in the territory of the Parties that receives classified information from the other Party shall maintain a record of all classified information (including information generated and/or reproduced under this Agreement) from and to the other Party.
3. In order to ensure the management and control of classified information in each organization of the Parties (establishment, enterprise) that generates, reproduces and/or retains classified information, a registration system is established to ensure the receipt, dissemination, control and protection of classified information. This system must be approved by a competent authority of the State concerned.
4. Information and communication systems (ICS) used to process electronic classified information exchanged under this Agreement shall be approved by the competent authority of the Party concerned.
Article 11
Classification mark, translation
and reproduction of classified information
1. Each party shall apply a classification mark to classified information received from the other Party in accordance with the safety classification table defined in Article 4 to ensure a degree of protection equivalent to that granted by the Party of origin.
2. The translation or reproduction of classified information exchanged is permitted only on the basis of the principle of the need to know and the regulations relating to the control and management referred to in Article 10. For classified information SECRET DEFENSE
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no copy may be made without express authorization from the Party of origin.
3. The translation/reproduction of classified information is carried out only by persons with security clearance at least equivalent to the classification level of the documents concerned.
4. Copies or translations of classified information bear the same classification mark as the original document to ensure the same protection.
5. The information
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are neither reproduced nor translated. Additional original documents may be provided upon written request to the Party of origin.
Article 12
Destruction and restitution of classified information
1. The classified information is destroyed:
(a) In an emergency, if they cannot be protected or used in accordance with this Agreement;
(b) If the Party of origin requests destruction;
(c) Agreement between the Parties, if they have lost their importance in accordance with the laws and regulations in force in the States of the Parties;
(d) Information classified CONFIDENTIEL DEFENSE
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or lower level may be destroyed at the initiative of the recipient Party without requesting the agreement of the other Party.
2. The classified documents are destroyed in such a way that their total or partial re-enactment, or the identification of classified information contained therein, is impossible.
3. The classified information shall be destroyed in accordance with the laws and regulations in force in the States of the Parties.
4. Classified material is destroyed so as not to be recognizable, or modified to prevent the complete or partial replenishment of classified information.
5. The Party of origin shall be informed of the destruction as soon as possible by means agreed by the competent authorities in accordance with the rule established by the laws and regulations in force in the States of the Parties.
6. Upon request from the Party of origin, classified information shall be returned.
7. Classified Information
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shall not be destroyed unless expressly authorized by the Party of origin, except for the cases provided for in paragraph 1(a) of this article. They shall be returned to the Party of origin in accordance with the provisions of Article 9, where it has been recognized that they are no longer necessary or at the expiry of their validity.
Article 13
Loss or compromise
The recipient Party shall promptly inform the Party of origin of any loss or compromise or any possibility of loss or compromise of classified information and shall initiate an investigation to determine the circumstances. The receiving Party shall transmit to the Party of origin the results of this investigation and the information relating to the measures taken to prevent such cases from recurring. The Party of origin may be associated with the investigation in accordance with the national laws and regulations of the recipient Party.
Article 14
Review of security systems
After consultation between the Parties, the representative of one Party is authorized to visit the other Party in order to maintain procedures for the implementation of the other Party and to observe them directly with a view to achieving a reasonable comparability of security systems. Each Party may assist representatives of the other Party in determining whether the classified information provided by the other Party is properly protected.
Article 15
Contracts
1. The Party wishing to enter into a contract classified with a contractor of the State of the other Party, or wishing to authorize one of its own contractors to enter into a contract classified in the State of the other Party within the framework of a classified project, shall, in advance, have obtained from the Competent Authority of the other Party the written assurance that the proposed potential contractor has a security clearance of the required level and shall deal with adequate means to retain
2. A security annex is established for any contractual instrument containing classified information. In this annex, the NOA or the competent authorities of the Party of origin specify what should be protected by the recipient Party and the applicable level of security classification. Only the Party of origin may change the classification level of the information defined in the security annex.
3. The contractor's responsibility for the protection of classified information includes at least the obligation:
(a) To disclose classified information only to persons with security clearance, who need to know it and used in the contract;
(b) Implement the means necessary to transmit classified information, as defined by the competent authorities;
(c) To apply the procedures and devices provided to inform the competent authority of any change that may occur with respect to classified information;
(d) Implement procedures for visits by staff from one Party to another, as defined by the competent authorities;
(e) To inform its Competent Authority of any unauthorized access, or any attempt or presumption of unauthorized access to classified information exchanged;
(f) Use only classified information received for purposes related to the purpose of the Classified Agreement;
(g) To comply with the procedures established by the laws and regulations in force in the States of the Parties with regard to the receipt, transmission, processing and final destruction of classified information.
4. A notification of any Classified Agreement shall be forwarded in advance to the competent authority of the State where the activities shall be carried out.
5. A copy of the security annex of any Classified Agreement (Security Annex or Security Letter) is forwarded to the competent authority of the State where the activities must be carried out prior to the notification of the said contract. The Competent Authority is responsible for defining and administering the necessary measures to implement the Classified Agreement.
6. Before entering into a contract classified with a subcontractor, the contractor must obtain the authorization of its competent authorities. Subcontractors comply with the same security requirements as the contractor.
Article 16
Fees
The application of this Agreement in principle does not entail any specific costs.
Each Party shall bear only all costs incurred by it for the purposes of this Agreement.
Article 17
Settlement of disputes
Any dispute relating to the interpretation or application of this Agreement shall be settled by consultation between the competent authorities of the Parties or, where such a regulation is impossible, between duly authorized representatives of the Parties, by negotiation, without appeal to a national or international tribunal or to a third party.
Article 18
Final provisions
1. This Agreement shall be concluded for an indefinite period and shall take effect on the first day of the month following the date of receipt of the last written notification confirming the completion of the internal procedures necessary for its entry into force.
2. Each Party may terminate the application of this Agreement by written notification of denunciation of the Agreement communicated to the other Party through diplomatic channels. The application of the Agreement will end 6 (six) months after the date of this notification. Notwithstanding the denunciation of this Agreement, all classified information submitted pursuant to this Agreement shall continue to be protected in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.
3. This Agreement may be amended or supplemented by mutual agreement between the Parties. These amendments and supplements, which form an integral part of this Agreement, are concluded in the form of separate protocols. They shall enter into force in the same manner as this Agreement.
Done in Tbilisi on 5 November 2012, in two original copies, in French and Georgian languages, both texts being equally authentic.
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You can consult the table in the
JOn° 85 of 11/04/2013 text number 2
You can consult the table in the
JOn° 85 of 11/04/2013 text number 2
You can consult the table in the
JOn° 85 of 11/04/2013 text number 2
You can consult the table in the
JOn° 85 of 11/04/2013 text number 2
You can consult the table in the
JOn° 85 of 11/04/2013 text number 2
You can consult the table in the
JOn° 85 of 11/04/2013 text number 2
You can consult the table in the
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You can consult the table in the
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Done on 9 April 2013.
François Hollande
By the President of the Republic:
The Prime Minister,
Jean-Marc Ayrault
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Laurent Fabius
For the Government
of the French Republic:
R. Salins,
Ambassador of France
Georgia
For the Government
of Georgia:
S. Kvinikhidze,
Director, Department
International Affairs
Ministry of Interior Georgia
