EU rejects Swiss demand for unilateral immigration brake

EU rejects demand for safeguard clause on free movement of persons Keystone-SDA

The European Union does not want to grant Switzerland a unilateral safeguard clause for the free movement of persons. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen conveyed this stance to Swiss President Viola Amherd on Tuesday in Geneva.

According to the Blick newspaper, Switzerland’s demand for a unilateral safeguard clause is a step too far, according to an EU Commission document. Another topic is said to be the Swiss cohesion contribution to the EU.

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According to the document quoted, the EU wants to conclude negotiations with Switzerland on an agreement by the end of this year. According to Blick, the EU Commission believes that progress has been made to such an extent that this goal is realistic.

The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) did not want to comment directly on the leaked EU report, but emphasised that it did not want to be rushed.

“We do not see the consultations of the EU member states scheduled for October 15 as a deadline,” said FDFA spokesperson Nicolas Bideau on Swiss television SRF on Thursday evening. After all, the president of the EU Commission has set the end of this year as the target.

No pressure please

Switzerland also wants to conclude the negotiations with the EU as quickly as possible. However, the quality of these negotiations is what counts most for Bern, said Bideau. He added: “If we feel that the Federal Council’s objectives have been achieved, then we will conclude the negotiations.”

The leaked document from the EU Commission triggered different reactions from the parties. The Swiss People’s Party was annoyed by the cohesion contribution. Brussels wants a billion francs more, which is unacceptable, said parliamentarian Pierre-André Page on the SRF television programme on Thursday evening. “And what’s more: the free movement of persons.” That was too much, said Page. “End of the debate!”

Centre Party Parliamentarian Vincent Maitre takes a very different view. “I think we have reached a point where Switzerland was probably too rigid, and the whole edifice threatens to collapse if we insist on our positions,” he said on the same SRF programme.

President Amherd met with EU Commission President von der Leyen in Geneva on Tuesday to mark the 70th anniversary of the CERN research center. There, von der Leyen apparently conveyed the positions from the EU Commission’s paper.

Adapted from German by DeepL/ac

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