EU's 'Made in Europe' policy alarms Switzerland and Norway

Switzerland and Norway, long-standing economic allies of the European Union, are voicing strong concerns that Brussels's escalating protectionist industrial policies are jeopardizing their deep integration with the EU's single market. These nations have meticulously built close economic relationships with the bloc over decades, adopting a significant portion of EU regulations and contributing billions to European programs in return for access to the vast market of 450 million consumers.

However, the EU's recent strategies, designed to counter competition from China and the United States through subsidies, tariffs, and stringent 'Made in Europe' requirements, are placing unprecedented pressure on this established model. The measures intended to shield European industries are now increasingly affecting neighboring countries whose economies and supply chains are intricately linked with the EU.

"EU initiatives are increasingly focused on 'Made in EU' requirements," stated the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs to the Financial Times. Bern argues that new regulations should encompass "entire European value chains, including Switzerland." Swiss officials note that while problems are not always intentional discrimination, Bern must frequently intervene to prevent the country from being treated as a distant third country.

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EU initiatives are increasingly focused on 'Made in EU' requirements.

An example of this friction involved proposed EU regulations that favored municipal waste processing within the EU, even when the nearest facility was in Switzerland. Following Bern's intervention, an exception was made. Switzerland also protested EU steel protection measures that treated it less favorably than Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, which are part of the European Economic Area. Similar objections were raised regarding provisions in the EU's Industrial Accelerator Act.

The stakes are high for Bern. The EU remains Switzerland's largest trading partner, and the country commits billions of francs annually to EU cohesion programs without formal influence over the bloc's industrial policy. Norway, too, faces similar challenges, paying hundreds of millions of euros yearly for participation in EU programs and contributing to economic equalization mechanisms.

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New regulations should encompass 'entire European value chains, including Switzerland'.