customs union is characterised by the existence of a single external tariff applied by all Member States to imports coming from third countries. Such imports only have to clear customs once and can then move freely within the common customs area. Reaching an agreement among the original Member States on a single external tariff required a complex striking of balances and compromises, given the different national interests, stemming from the different products that each country wished to protect. The common customs tariff (CCT) adopted by the European institutions in 1968 is, therefore, a major achievement of European integration (Article 28 TFEU, ex Article 23 TEC).