Alain Berset was in Vienna on Friday to meet his counterpart Alexander Van der Bellen, who notably expressed support for Swiss participation in the EU’s Horizon Europe programme.
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On Friday Van der Bellen said the “beautiful tradition” that the Swiss president (which rotates among cabinet members every year) always makes his or her first state visit to Austria was a sign of close and trusting relations between the neighbours.
The pair spoke about issues including European Union (EU) relations, with Berset underlining Bern’s will to further develop a mutually beneficial partnership with Brussels, according to a statement from the Interior Ministry.
In 2021, Switzerland unilaterally broke off negotiations with the EU on a framework deal to replace the more than 120 bilateral accords which have regulated relations for the past decades – leading to a souring of relations between Bern and Brussels.
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Subsequent efforts to break the diplomatic deadlock have not succeeded, and Switzerland also finds itself now locked out of the lucrative Horizon Europe research programme.
According to the Austrian news agency APA, Van der Bellen said “I personally find it intolerable that Switzerland, with the best universities in the world […] is currently excluded from Horizon Europe”.
The relationship works both ways, he said, adding that “Austria will do everything to improve the relationship between the EU and Switzerland at this level”.
Berset’s programme on Friday included talks with various other high level Austrian politicians, and followed a meeting yesterday with the secretary-general of the Vienna-based Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
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