Federal Councilor Adolf Ogi (left), Federal Councilor Jean-Pascal Delamuraz and Swedish Minister Ulf Dinkelspiel sign the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) on 2 May 1992 in the Portuguese port city of Porto. (archive image)
The 1,700 newly accessible documents shed light on the outcome of the EEA referendum, the environmental summit in Rio de Janeiro, developments in Eastern Europe and the issue of neutrality in the new political climate, as reported by the Dodis research center at the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences.
1992 was a fateful political year: on December 6, the electorate sealed a turning point in European politics. Switzerland’s entry into the European Economic Area (EEA) failed.
In the spring, the Bundesrat decided to quickly submit an application for accession negotiations with the European Communities (EC), as the EU was then known. Transport Minister Adolf Ogi (SVP) is decisive, according to the documents.
(SDA)