Germany has committed itself in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) – as have other Member States of the European Union – to prepare inventories of its annual greenhouse gas emissions by source categories. The EU is itself a signatory to the Convention. In accordance with Council Decision 1999/296/EG on a mechanism for monitoring emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the Community, Member States are also required to submit annual national greenhouse gas inventories to the Commission for preparation of the EU inventory. The national inventories, compiled according to a common reporting format (CRF), are examined by the European Commission (as well as by EUROSTAT), with the support of the European Environmental Agency (EEA), before preparation of the EU inventory. The statistics submitted also include activity data, such as annual energy statistics.