The Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Paolo Gentiloni, met his Swiss counterpart, Didier Burkhalter, in Berne today, 28 May 2015.
During their cordial, in-depth discussion the ministers reviewed the excellent state of bilateral relations. Evidence of this is the signing in February 2015 of the agreement on financial and fiscal questions and the advanced state of negotiations for the review of the 1974 agreement on the tax treatment of cross-border workers.
Discussion focused on the scenario opened up by the February 2014 referendum on free movement. Minister Gentiloni underscored the need to respect the European Union’s key principle of the free movement of people. He also stressed the need to encourage negotiations in Brussels to take into account the sensitivities that emerged from the referendum.
During their discussion and press conference, Minister Gentiloni referred to actions and statements made at Swiss canton level on the topic of cross-border workers. Actions and statements that he described as unacceptable and not in line with the excellent state of relations between the two countries. Their result could be to make it more difficult for Italy to provide the support it intends to offer under all circumstances to Switzerland
