No Results Expected From Swiss-EU Immigration Deal Negotiations

© AFP 2023 / FABRICE COFFRINI A Swiss flag flies on the shores of Geneva Lake in front of the Geneva Fountain (L) on June 14, 2013 in the center of Geneva
A Swiss flag flies on the shores of Geneva Lake in front of the Geneva Fountain (L) on June 14, 2013 in the center of Geneva - Sputnik International
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No solutions are likely to emerge from the negotiations between Switzerland and the European Union on an immigration deal, with Bern likely to be forced to take a unilateral decision to resolve the issue, Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter, a lawmaker from the Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland, told Sputnik on Tuesday.

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MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Late last week, Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann met with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on the sidelines of an international summit in Mongolia to discuss a mutually agreeable solution to the Swiss initiative to curb the number of migrants coming to the country.

In a statement on Saturday, the Swiss government said “technical discussions” between the two sides would be intensified but that they would not meet again until September 19.

“Concerning the relationship between the EU and Switzerland, I can say that I expected no more results. The EU will never give us more rights than EU states have. We will find now a unilateral way and hope that this way will be expected,” Schneider-Schneiter, who is vice-chair of the National Council's Foreign Affairs Committee, stated.

According to the Swiss Constitution, the country has until next February to implement a 2014 initiative, approved by a national referendum, to put some form of limits on immigration from EU states. This goes against the European Union’s principle of free movement of people in the common market, to which Switzerland adheres. The country’s set of bilateral agreements with the bloc, including the access to EU-single market, might be jeopardized if the initiative is implemented.

“It is impossible to implement the Initiative without risking the Bilaterals,” Schneider-Schneiter admitted.

Currently, the Swiss parliament is holding a discussion on a unilateral solution, although in a recent interview for the Tages Anzeiger newspaper, the president said that implementing immigration curbs unilaterally “must remain a last resort.”

The long-lasting negotiations between Brussels and Bern were put on hold earlier this year because of the United Kingdom's referendum on its EU membership, with EU officials asking Switzerland to wait until the Brexit issue had been clarified.

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