No. 37: Switzerland and the EU

The Prospects of Bilateralism

Author(s): Daniel Möckli
Editor(s): Daniel Möckli
Series: CSS Analyses in Security Policy
Issue: 37
Publisher(s): Center for Security Studies, ETH Zurich
Publication Year: 2008

Through its bilateral agreements with the EU, Switzerland has gained far-reaching access to the Single Market. EU accession is no longer an economic issue for the Swiss. However, the longer-term sustainability and usefulness of bilateralism as the main paradigm of Switzerland's EU policy remain uncertain. Swiss politics are being increasingly Europeanized, but Switzerland as a non-member lacks a say in defining the relevant acquis communautaire. Also, the Swiss bilateral approach is vulnerable both domestically and in the international arena. The double strategy of selective cooperation coupled with niche policies in the finance and tax sector as well as in foreign policy has met with some criticism in the EU.

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