Brussels, 10/04/2014 (Agence Europe) - The tension between Switzerland and the EU after the 9 February Swiss referendum on mass immigration is gradually on the way to being resolved. A meeting between the EU and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) was organised during the evening of Wednesday 9 April which enabled Croatia - a side victim of the referendum - to say that it is satisfied with Bern's proposals for a compromise.
The Swiss government again proposed to Zagreb that it would informally apply the free movement protocol for Croatian workers - but without signing it, as the 9 February vote prohibits this. This solution had already been positively welcomed by the Croatian government a few days previously, but this time it was in a more official framework that the proposal was made. Zagreb agreed on Wednesday for the mandate on the EU-Switzerland institutional agreement to be adopted by the Council.
Several other issues remain to be settled, however, before Coreper (the committee of permanent representatives of the EU member states) can give its definitive green light to this mandate which is supposed to renew the relations that unite Switzerland and the EU - issues that currently depend on a series of bilateral agreements. Indeed, a statement needs to be honed that will be joined to the mandate. The objective of the statement is to recall that, if the EU accepts the mandate, it remains aware of the message of 9 February aiming to limit immigration of foreign workers within three years, and remains aware of the consequences that will result from this for Europeans.
Until now the European Commission has blocked, seemingly in reprisal, several exchange programmes with Switzerland, such as Erasmus and Horizon 2020. Switzerland expects the Commission to reactivate these programmes if an acceptable solution for Croatia is found and accepted by all the member states.
Another EU-EFTA meeting is planned for next week to continue work on the statement accompanying the mandate, with the member states having to submit their comments on this. Coreper will then take back the mandate as soon as the statement is finalised, says a source at the Council, who believes that the issue is now heading in the right direction. (SP)