On Monday 2 September, the European Commission expressed its regret that Switzerland “does not intend to make any progress on the framework agreement” and to ensure that “our relations are stable”, said Mina Andreeva, the institution's spokesperson.
She was reacting to several interviews published this weekend in the Swiss press, including that of the Swiss Federal Councillor in charge of the Economy, Guy Parmelin, who told the SonntagsZeitung that the country would probably not resume its discussions with the EU on the draft framework agreement finalised at the end of 2018 before 2020. “We will have to resume the dialogue at the earliest next year”, he said.
The Minister of Economy also criticised the “dogmatism” of the EU's position, which may force Switzerland to seek “alternative partners”, just like the “United Kingdom”, in research, for example, or in other areas where the EU has threatened to harden cooperation if the framework agreement is not ratified.
Ueli Maurer, President of the Swiss Confederation, for his part, considered in the SonntagsBlick that this agreement, which has not yet been approved in Switzerland, was “a failure”.
“Our doors remain open”, the Commission spokesperson once again reacted, recalling that President Juncker had invested a lot of time in this draft agreement and that this issue, which had not been resolved during his term of office, was one of his great “regrets”. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)