The government has ruled out an automatic acceptance of any future changes in European Union (EU) law.
This content was published on
1 minute
“All forms of automatism are excluded at the risk of losing the flexibility offered by the bilateral path,” said Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey at a media conference on Thursday.
She was keen for negotiations currently underway – on electricity, health and agriculture – to continue, but insisted on Switzerland having a voice in future discussions on EU law.
Switzerland is not a member of the EU, although joining the EU remains the cabinet’s stated option. A Swiss application for membership has been lodged in Brussels but remains dormant.
To ensure Switzerland does not suffer discrimination as a non-member, Swiss legislation in many fields, including trade, has been brought into line with that of the EU.
The pragmatic response of the Swiss government since 1992 – when Swiss voters narrowly turned down membership of the European Economic Area – has been to engage in talks with the EU on a series of bilateral accords.
A first set, mainly on trade, labour and transport issues, came into force in 2002 and a second series in 2004.
General Swiss scepticism about the EU was underlined by a national vote in 2001, which turned down a proposal on opening membership negotiations.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
For Milan’s gypsies, Switzerland is just a name
This content was published on
swissinfo visited a Roma camp on the outskirts of Milan, in northern Italy, where members of the ethnic minority live in appalling conditions on the fringes of society. “It is not the land which forces us to stay, but it is man who clings to the land,” says Mirko, an Italian Roma. For years he…
This content was published on
A spokesman for the Integration Office in Bern confirmed on Tuesday that the letter had arrived, but said no sums had been mentioned. Switzerland has been supporting Bulgaria and Romania annually to the tune of SFr25 million ($20 million) over the past few years. This transitional aid was meant to stop when the two eastern…
This content was published on
Switzerland has a turbulent relationship with the European Union. While many Swiss would be happy to join the EU, there are even more who are not interested as nationwide votes have shown in the past. (Keystone)
This content was published on
Timişoara, known also as “Little Vienna”, is one of Romania’s large economic and cultural centres. Boasting a strong Austro-Hungarian influence, it is often called the second-most affluent city in Romania, after Bucharest. Timişoara is also the seat of the 1989 Romanian Revolution.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.