29In those circumstances, it is necessary, in the third place, to examine whether the principle of the protection of legitimate expectations was duly observed. In that regard, it should be borne in mind that, although that principle is one of the fundamental principles of the European Union, economic operators are not justified in having a legitimate expectation that an existing situation, which is capable of being altered by the EU institutions in the exercise of their discretionary power, will be maintained, particularly in an area such as that of the common organisation of the markets, the objective of which involves constant adjustment to reflect changes in economic circumstances (see, to that effect, judgments of 5 October 1994, Crispoltoni and Others, C‑133/93, C‑300/93 and C‑362/93, EU:C:1994:364, paragraph 57; of 17 September 1998, Pontillo, C‑372/96, EU:C:1998:412, paragraph 22; and of 26 June 2012, Poland v Commission, C‑335/09 P, EU:C:2012:385, paragraph 180 and the case-law cited).
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