Economic cooperation with Russia to increase
Swiss-Russian economic cooperation gets a boost under the terms of an action plan adopted on Thursday in the southern Russian resort of Sochi.
The agreement was signed by the Swiss economics minister, Doris Leuthard, who is also this year’s Swiss president, and her Russian counterpart Elvira Nabiullina, during a meeting with Russian president Dmitri Medvedev, the Swiss economics ministry said.
It replaces and extends a previous agreement which is due to expire at the end of the year.
Under the three-year plan economic, commercial and financial cooperation will be increased and investments stepped up.
Tourism, energy and civil aviation have been included in the new plan for the first time, as well as an easing of customs formalities.
The two sides also decided to work for a free trade agreement between Russia and the European Free Trade Area, consisting of Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
They agreed that the economics ministers of the two countries should continue to meet every year.
Trade between Switzerland and Russia has nearly tripled in the last five years, reaching SFr2.8 billion ($2.72 billion) in 2009.
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