GENEVA (AFP) – After years of negotiations, Switzerland appears poised to approve a package of agreements on its relations with the European Union (EU) this week, though Swiss lawmakers and a likely referendum could still tank the deal.
“Today we have reached a stage where the two contracting parties believe it is time to blow the final whistle,” said an European studies professor at the University of Fribourg Gilbert Casasus.
The result of that match, he said, “while not brilliant, has the advantage of satisfying both Bern and Brussels”.
Switzerland, which is not part of the EU, is seeking to “stabilise and develop” ties with its largest trading partner.
Those relations are currently governed by more than 120 agreements.
For nearly two decades, the two sides have been discussing the need to simplify and harmonise ties, but relations soured in 2021, when, without warning, Bern slammed the door on the negotiations.
The talks tentatively resumed in March, with both sides saying they hoped to conclude a deal by the end of the year, updating the existing bilateral agreements and concluding new ones on issues like electricity, health and food safety.
Reaching a deal would “enable Switzerland to maintain the current conditions, allowing its economy to access the European market, and to develop them in important areas”, the Swiss business federation Economiesuisse said.
There had been fears that Switzerland’s efforts to secure an exemption to the EU’s cherished free movement of people between countries could make an agreement difficult.
But Swiss media, citing diplomatic sources, recently reported that this longtime sticking point and all other issues had been settled.
The only exception, according to reports, was the amount Switzerland should pay into the EU’s Cohesion Fund, which is aimed at reducing economic and social disparities in the bloc.
European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic this week described the efforts to “intensify” the talks.
