Brussels, 04/07/2002 (Agence Europe) - The negotiations between the EU and Switzerland over savings tax did not make any progress at the meeting in Berne on Wednesday between European Commissioner Frits Bolkestein and the Swiss President and finance minister Kaspar Villiger. The Commission described the meeting at the official launch of the negotiations at political level, following the first meeting between high ranking officials on 18 June 2002. In a press release, Switzerland described the same meeting as an informal exchange of views without an agenda, adding that both Kaspar Villiger and Frits Bolkestein agreed to not release any further information about the subjects they discussed. The Commission said that the negotiations would be continuing but that the date of the next meeting had not been fixed. Basically, Switzerland has again confirmed that it is prepared to implement "equivalent measures" to those to be adopted at the end of this year by the EU as part of the tax package but only based on deduction at source and not "exchange of information". It remains to be seen whether both sides will be able to reach a compromise over exchange of information provided upon request (similar to the system requested by the US) or over a moratorium until 2010, when Luxembourg, Belgium and Austria are expected to join the Community information exchange system.