EU parliamentarian Andreas Schwab has reacted cautiously to the announcement that the Swiss Federal Council – the government – plans to draw up a new mandate for negotiations with Brussels, SRF public radio reports.
The government wants to carry out preparatory work for possible negotiations with the European Union (EU) and is having a negotiating mandate drawn up for this purpose. Negotiation points include – among other things – access to the European electricity market, rules to protect Swiss wages and research collaboration.
After Switzerland broke off negotiations for a framework agreement in 2021, it is now taking a step towards a new contract. On the EU side, however, the hope was for more, says Andreas Schwab, who sits in the EU Parliament for the European People’s Party.
The German is responsible, among other things, for parliamentary relations with Switzerland. In this role he does not negotiate, but he is well informed. Schwab says he is pleased that the Swiss government wants to negotiate with the EU. ...