Press Release
Swiss-US relations: Meeting between Michael Ambühl, Swiss State Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and Daniel Fried, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs
Bern, Switzerland - September 29, 2006
Today, the State Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Michael Ambühl, received Daniel Fried, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, in Berne for talks. At the meeting, the United States and Switzerland launched a comprehensive political dialogue on issues of common interest, across the full range of U.S.-Swiss relations. The two sides exchanged information on current issues and outlined areas for future cooperation. The United States and Switzerland will build on this political dialogue during a future visit to Washington by Mr. Ambühl.
Today’s meeting between Swiss State Secretary Ambühl and U.S. Assistant Secretary Fried launches a regular political dialogue as called for in a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding signed last May by Mr. Ambühl and Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns. Today’s talks began with an in-depth discussion on the political situation in the Balkans, in the Near and Middle East, in Sudan, and in South Asia. Mr Ambühl and Mr Fried outlined areas for future cooperation, including good governance, decentralization, minority rights, transitional justice, and reconciliation in the Balkans; efforts to bring peace to Sudan; reform and democracy in the broader Middle East; increasing international capacity for disaster relief; counter terrorism; and educational exchanges. The talks also constructively addressed issues of security, economic and scientific policy, human rights and international law, as well as reforms at the United Nations.
The talks, at which representatives of other Swiss federal departments as well as U.S. Ambassador to Switzerland Peter Coneway also participated, represent a deepening and expanding Swiss-U.S. relations. The U.S. and Switzerland established a working group for follow on discussions at more technical levels.
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