Swiss-EU agreements
European voices argue for a “yes” to agreements
Two European parliamentarians deliver their vision of current negotiations. Behind the scenes of Brussels, they explain why they believe that “it is now or never”.
Ignazio Cassis and the European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic set the methods of cooperation between Switzerland and the EU, for the period to the desired entry into force of the bilateral agreements.
OLIVIER MATHYS/EPA
- The Andreas Schwab and Christophe Grudler MEPs, close neighbors of Switzerland, actively defend bilateral negotiations.
- The European Union has granted significant concessions to Switzerland.
- A refusal of agreements would result in the progressive erosion of existing relations.
When Brussels policies speak of Switzerland, the accident is never far away. Only Beat Jans (PS/BS) dares to act, Andreas Schwab recently told the “Südkurier” in Constance. All the other federal advisers would have “scared”. When the “Blick” resumed this declaration, the German MEP was flooded with hostile letters from Switzerland. However, he simply wanted to say that the Federal Council had to engage more in favor of new agreements with the EU to obtain popular membership.
Andreas Schwab and Christophe Grudler are the two parliamentarians who care about Switzerland in the EU. They can be qualified without exaggeration as friends of Switzerland. One is German and 52 years old, the other French and 60 years old.
The German MEP Andreas Schwab (CDU) has been following negotiations with Switzerland for many years.
IMAGO
Both grew up near Switzerland: Andreas Schwab in the city of Rottweil, not far from Lake Constance, and Christophe Grudler in Belfort, at the foot of the Jura. One is a member of the CDU, the other, of a party in the center called a democratic movement. Christophe Grudler is the coordinator of the Industry, Research, Energy Commission in the European Parliament and permanent rapporteur for relations with Switzerland. Andreas Schwab is the author of a political work published in 2022.
Christophe Grudler is a member of the delegation for Nordic cooperation and for relations with Switzerland and Norway.
MARTIN BERTRAND/IMAGO
“Yes”, explains Christophe Grudler, “when we talk about Switzerland in Brussels as French or German, this often causes disproportionate reactions to Switzerland, unrelated to the real importance of the subject”.
Andreas Schwab recognizes that it is sometimes difficult for him to address his voters clearly without hitting the sensitivity of the Swiss. For the moment, it is a question of eating tensions, estimates the French. He will go to Switzerland regularly in the coming months to present the EU position concerning agreements with Switzerland. But six months before the vote, he will no longer set foot in the country. Both consider Berne should be more involved in these agreements. The future of the country is at stake.
Christophe Grudler was in Bern with the French president, Emmanuel Macron. He advised the Federal Council to avoid any tactical maneuver and to fully commit to the agreements which it negotiates. “Only the fights that we do not lead are lost in advance.” Both welcome that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ignazio helmet recently displayed more firmness. But should we still believe it? wonders the German politician.
Switzerland obtained a lot during negotiations
After the trauma of 2021, when the Federal Council suddenly abandoned a framework agreement negotiated for years with the EU, the new negotiations pleasantly surprised the two politicians. The Frenchman believes that Switzerland has obtained a lot. For example, the Directive on the Rights of Citizens of the European Union will only apply to Switzerland. The arbitral tribunal will bring together Swiss and European judges, the European Court of Justice holding only a secondary role.
With the safeguard clause for immigration management, the EU also granted Switzerland an instrument that it had refused to Great Britain before the Brexit referendum in 2016.
According to Christophe Grudler, migration is such a sensitive subject that the fears it arouses. Asked about the EU’s state of mind towards Switzerland, now that the agreements are on the table, Andreas Schwab immediately responds that there are none.
Many European politicians are little interested in our country. In its native Baden-Wurtemberg region, some believe that Germany should be inspired by Switzerland: pay less and enjoy more. The others believe that Switzerland must comply with the rules that apply to all of Europe.
“Switzerland should not be a milk cow for the EU”
Switzerland is appreciated, underlines Andreas Grudler, but jealousy is felt. When the European Parliament will vote on the agreements with Switzerland in 2026, the result will not be acquired in advance. An Estonian, a Greek or a Spaniard just want to know if Switzerland pays enough to access the single market. “Demand the double!” Asked some. “Switzerland should not be a milk cow for the EU,” adds the politician. “She has to pay the right price.” He talks about the agreements around him.
What the Frenchman wants above all about the debate in Switzerland is that he is “honest”. “I’m worried about seeing populist arguments destroy something that is vital for the future of Switzerland.”
For both, honesty implies recognizing that the world has become more demanding and more dangerous. Europe suffers, certainly, but the union is strength. This also applies to Germany or France, and even more for a small state like Switzerland. Faced with the intensification of Sino-American economic competition and aggressive powers such as Russia, Switzerland and the EU become more and more interdependent.
When adaptability successfully rhymes for Switzerland
For Christophe Grudler, only those who adapt will get out of it. This is worth as much for the EU as for Switzerland, country with its own specificities, innovative and hardworking. The feeling of being able to compete with the whole world is part of its DNA. But sometimes her conviction of being so unique pushes her to make mistakes.
A yes from the Swiss people to the new agreements with the EU would be an opportunity and a great relief. “I like Switzerland, I want to help it. I think that closer cooperation with the EU would be useful to him. ” Andreas Schwab adopts a more pragmatic position. “A yes would not be a huge leap forward, but rather a guarantee that everything remains as it is, or at least does not deteriorate.”
On the other hand, both consider the no as an opportunity that we would have missed. “She will not stand out,” says German. It’s now or never. A refusal would lead to the gradual decline of existing bilateral agreementswhich could no longer evolve according to new requirements. While problems accumulate in Europe, Switzerland is not spared.
Translated from German by Emmanuelle Stevan
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