The legally binding obligation the Convention puts on the signatory states is to facilitate cross-border cooperation between territorial authorities and to promote the conclusion of agreements that may prove necessary for this purpose (art.

Furthermore, the contracting parties commit to encourage any initiative by territorial authorities inspired by the model agreements listed in part two of the convention.

CBC shall not alter the existing powers of the territorial authorities as they are defined in the respective domestic legal orders.

In 1995, the convention was supplemented by an Additional Protocol [1], ruling that cross-border co-operative arrangements can be set up as independent bodies which may or may not have legal personality.

4, the co-operation body cannot be empowered to take measures which apply generally or which might affect the rights and freedoms of individuals.

In view of the far-reaching implications of such a transnational public authority, Germany, France and Sweden chose to sign the protocol without art.