First visit of the year by Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter will include the Netherlands – which currently presides over the Council of the EU – and China
Bern, 11.01.2016 - On his first trip abroad in 2016, Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter will travel to The Hague on Thursday to meet with Foreign Minister Bert Koenders with whom he will mainly discuss relations between Switzerland and the European Union (EU), presided over by the Netherlands in the first half of 2016. The head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA will then go directly to Beijing on Friday where he and his counterpart Wang Yi are to discuss relations between Switzerland and China, a key partner for Switzerland outside Europe.
In The Hague, one of Mr Burkhalter's concerns will be to remind his counterpart of the measures and timetable envisaged by the Federal Council to implement provisions to better control immigration while maintaining and developing the bilateral approach. The discussion agenda will also include institutional matters that determine how relations between Switzerland and its main economic partner, the European Union, will function in future. Finally, Mr Burkhalter and Mr Koenders will take stock of bilateral relations and various constructive collaborations in this area.
The 6th round of political talks between Switzerland and China will take place on Friday. The meeting between Mr Burkhalter and Mr Wang will also cover economic ties between the two countries and review the dialogues launched on the fight against corruption and on counterterrorism, human rights issues and cooperation on cybersecurity. In addition, the men will discuss the two countries' cooperation in multilateral forums such as the UN and the G20. Security in the Asia region, the current major crisis hotspots and Switzerland's contributions to peace, in particular through International Geneva, will also feature in their discussions.
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