Brussels, 07/03/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 4 March, Switzerland and the EU signed a protocol on extending the agreement on the free movement of persons to Croatia. The Swiss government had blocked the text after accepting the referendum result against mass immigration in February 2014, setting off retaliation measures.
After the referendum result of 9 February, calling for quotas for European migrant workers arriving in Switzerland, the Federal Council (Swiss government) considered that the Swiss people no longer authorised it to sign the protocol planned with Croatia. The EU then responded by suspending Switzerland's participation in the European research programme Horizon 2020 and in the European student exchange programme Erasmus+.
After lengthy discussions between the two parties, the Swiss Federal Council unblocked the situation by announcing it would respect the freedom of movement even without agreement, and that it would pay the 45 million Swiss francs in aid that was planned for Croatia. Switzerland was thus able to be partially reassociated with the European programmes until the end of 2016. The protocol was signed in Brussels on Friday by a representative of the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the EU and the Swiss secretary of state for migration, Mario Gattiker. The agreement must be ratified by the Swiss Parliament in order to lead to Switzerland's full reintegration in the European programmes. According to Swiss media, the stakes for research are put at billions of francs. If there is no definitive solution, Switzerland will participate as a third (non-EU) state in the whole Horizon 2020 programme.
The Croatia protocol was signed on Friday 4 March, a few hours before the presentation of the draft legislation on implementing the referendum of 9 February 2014. The draft legislation contains the famous safeguard clause that the Swiss government intends to activate unilaterally in the event of the two parties not finding solutions on European workers. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)