Switzerland

Although Switzerland's most important trading partners are the European Union (EU) countries - 65 percent of exports and 80 percent of imports are with the EU countries -- the Swiss recently rejected a proposal to start accession negotiations immediately. The rejection was overwhelming: 75.7 percent of voters rejected the idea and only 23.3 percent voted yes with a turn-out of 55.1 percent.

Previous votes on joining the EU show that opinions have been roughly divided by language groups - with French and Italian speakers being wholeheartedly in favor of membership while German speakers are more reserved. However, the latest vote was rejected even in some of the most pro-European areas of the country.

The Swiss government, which had called for the proposal to be rejected, is underlining that the NO vote should be interpreted as a reluctance to opening talks immediately rather than a definitive rejection of European membership.

Pascal Couchepin, the Federal Economic Minister, says he was pleased with the outcome: "If you ask me: do you want to join the EU, I say No; but if you ask: me do you want to join the EU tomorrow, I say Yes -- and that is the answer of the Swiss as well. They want to join, but tomorrow. They want to see first how the EU is going to evolve and how necessary it is for us to join."

The government has set 2004 as the date when it hopes to start membership talks. However, Couchepin said that there would be "no further steps in terms of integration until seven years after ratification of the bilateral agreements."

This package -- seven bilateral agreements designed to normalise relations between Switzerland and the EU -- was signed in 1999. and supposed to come into force at the beginning of this year. However, only seven out of the fifteen EU member states have ratified them so far.

If the outcome of the latest referendum does not delay ratification, the bilateral agreements should be signed by 2002, and new membership talks will conceivably restart in 2009.

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