The European Commission and Switzerland announced on Friday, December 20, the conclusion of negotiations to revise bilateral agreements aimed at “deepening and expanding” their relationship.
The updated framework covers a wide range of agreements, including five on Switzerland’s access to the EU’s single market. These pertain to air and land transport, free movement, conformity with EU standards, and trade in agricultural products.
New agreements include the creation of a Joint Food Safety Zone between Switzerland and the EU, access for Switzerland to the European electricity and healthcare markets, and Swiss participation in EU programs such as Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe.
A separate agreement will outline Switzerland’s involvement in specific European Space Agency projects.
The EU and Switzerland are close neighbors with extensive cross-border ties. The EU is Switzerland’s largest trading partner, while Switzerland ranks as the EU’s fourth-largest partner.
Around 1.5 million EU citizens reside in Switzerland, and approximately 450,000 Swiss citizens live in the EU. Hundreds of thousands of EU citizens cross the border daily for work.
Negotiations began in March 2024 and involved over 200 meetings. They followed the Swiss government’s approval of a new mandate to modernize its relations with the EU.
