Press Release: Commission to negotiate with Switzerland an agreement on cooperation against fraud and other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the European Union

On 14.12.00, the Council authorised the Commission to negotiate with Switzerland an agreement to improve the cooperation against fraud and other illegal activities which affect the financial interests of the European Communities and the Member States of the European Union. Organised fraud, smuggling and other illegal activities perpetrated from Swiss territory have recently assumed enormous proportions, causing major financial losses to the Communities estimated at several billion euros per year. Given the intensity of economic relations between the Communities and Switzerland, which will shortly be extended further under seven bilateral agreements, this is unacceptable and demands an extra cooperation effort on both sides. For the European Union, this cooperation will constitute part of its overall relations with Switzerland and be a precondition for further steps towards deepening these relations.