“We are not starting from scratch”: EU ambassador to Switzerland has confidence in future agreement

class=”sc-cffd1e67-0 fmXrkB”>

“I think there is some certainty that what is on the table is quite close to an agreement that can meet the approval of both parties,” Mavromichalis said on Sunday in an interview with the ‘Forum’ program on RTS television in western Switzerland .

“We are not starting from scratch,” the ambassador said. Switzerland and the EU have been negotiating on institutional issues for almost fifteen years. “During the exploratory talks, we focused on the most sensitive issues and tried to find out if there was a way to resolve them to the satisfaction of both parties.”

According to Mavromichalis, Switzerland benefits primarily from maintaining and strengthening a model of relations with the EU that is tailor-made and suitable for this purpose. “In addition, we will be able to draw up and conclude three new agreements that Switzerland has requested, for example.”

The ambassador refuted fears in Switzerland of a loss of sovereignty or pressure on wages: “We are not talking about Switzerland’s accession to the EU, which would mean sharing sovereignty with the other member states. We are simply talking about Switzerland’s participation in the internal market and therefore compliance with the rules.”

As for pressure on wages, this is fear mongering, Petros Mavromichalis said. Switzerland is not an isolated case. EU Member States also have very different wage levels and very different economic developments.

The Greek is confident that he can convince the Swiss people of the benefits of new treaties: “I think that most of the votes on the EU issue have been won in Switzerland. You shouldn’t be afraid of that.” (SDA)

Source:Blick