Controversy over Trump visit Did Swiss entrepreneurs know more than they were allowed to?
In the customs dispute between Switzerland and the USA, a statement by former ambassador Thomas Borer is causing new discussions. He suggested that Swiss business leaders were aware of a draft agreement in the run-up to their meeting with US President Donald Trump.
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- Statements by former ambassador Thomas Borer about alleged knowledge of the treaty are causing political irritation.
- The department of Economics Minister Guy Parmelin denies having passed on confidential documents to company bosses.
- Several parties are demanding clarification about the flow of information surrounding the meeting in the Oval Office.
In connection with the customs conflict between Switzerland and the USA, a visit by Swiss business leaders to the Oval Office is once again coming under the spotlight. The reason for this is a statement made by former diplomat Thomas Borer on the SRF program "Club".
There he said that the business leaders present had "presented Donald Trump with the draft agreement". As the talks took place in "very close consultation" with the Department of Economic Affairs, several parties are now questioning how far the flow of information actually went before the meeting. This is reported in the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper.
Politicians want to clarify whether the delegation was given access to confidential negotiation documents in advance. SP Co-President Mattea Meyer calls for "full transparency" and demands in the National Council that the Control Committee is quickly shown "who knew what and what influence private actors had". She warns of a possible conflict of interest if individual business representatives were better informed than parliament.
Process was also discussed in the Commission
A few days earlier, SVP Economics Minister Guy Parmelin had emphasized in an interview that the company managements had "not seen a single secret document" and at no time knew more than the parliamentary committees.
When asked by the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper, his department stated that the entrepreneurs had received a "general briefing" from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) - but without confidential details. However, no one in the delegation had been able to see the text of the agreement, which had not yet been finalized at the time.
The group that received Trump at the beginning of November included several prominent business leaders, including Alfred Gantner from the Partners Group, Johann Rupert from Richemont and Jean-Frédéric Dufour from Rolex. The visit had given new impetus to the deadlocked customs dispute. Shortly afterwards, the Federal Council announced that an agreement in principle had been reached with the USA.
Thomas Borer qualifies statements
While the Department of Economic Affairs clearly rejects the account, Borer put his statements into perspective during the television program - and later to the "Tages-Anzeiger" newspaper: the entrepreneurs had not presented Trump with a draft agreement. Moreover, he himself had no mandate and had merely "helped out with a few contacts in Washington".
The customs deal with the USA has been repeatedly criticized, most recently by prominent figures. Nick Hayek, CEO of the Swatch Group, has criticized the customs deal. Hayek expresses the fear that Washington could make further demands.
