45Such an interpretation is consistent with the aims both of the Directive and of Article 11 thereof. According to the first recital of its preamble, the aim of the Directive is to introduce tax rules which are neutral from the point of view of competition in order to allow enterprises to adapt themselves to the requirements of the common market, to increase their productivity and to improve their competitive strength at the international level. That same recital also states that mergers, divisions, transfers of assets and exchanges of shares concerning companies of different Member States ought not to be hampered by restrictions, disadvantages or distortions arising in particular from the tax provisions of the Member States. It is only when the planned operation has as its objective tax evasion or tax avoidance that, according to Article 11 and the last recital of the preamble to the Directive, the Member States may refuse to apply the Directive.
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