Keller-Sutter and Parmelin hit a snag in Washington

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• No result after the meeting between President Keller-Sutter and Minister of Economic Affairs Parmelin with US Secretary of State Rubio in Washington.
• There will probably be no withdrawal of the 39 percent tariff announcement by the USA.
• The two members of the Federal Council decided not to attend a media conference in the US capital.

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Switzerland is biting on granite when it comes to US tariffs: following the meeting between President Karin Keller-Sutter and Economics Minister Guy Parmelin with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, there is no indication that the 39% tariff announcement by the USA will be withdrawn. And an appointment with US President Donald Trump was not on the White House's agenda.

Ticker on the customs dispute

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At least that is what the Bloomberg news agency reported, based on an official source from Trump's administration. It was unclear whether Keller-Sutter and Parmelin would meet ministers who are more directly responsible for tariffs, such as US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer or US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, during their visit on Wednesday.

After the meeting with US Secretary of State Rubio, Keller-Sutter told Swiss television channel SRF's "Tagesschau" program: "We had a very good meeting, a very friendly and open exchange on common issues and interests." However, she did not provide any details on the content of the meeting.

The two members of the Federal Council decided not to hold a media conference in the US capital. Such a conference will only take place after their return to Switzerland. The Federal Council aircraft was due to leave the USA on Wednesday and arrive in Bern-Belp on Thursday morning.

"More attractive offer" in their luggage

Keller-Sutter and Parmelin had arrived in the USA in a hurry on Tuesday evening in order to avert the high customs surcharges at the last minute. The aim was to make the USA "a more attractive offer" before the tariffs came into force on Thursday, the Federal Council explained. According to insiders, Switzerland wants to reduce the tariffs to around 15 percent - the same tariff rate as for the EU.

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US President Trump initially threatened Switzerland with tariffs of 31% at the beginning of April and then increased them to 39% last week. They are to apply from this Thursday.

However, not all Swiss industries are affected by the high US tariffs. The export-heavy pharmaceutical industry, for example, is exempt - for the time being. In a recent interview with the US broadcaster CNBC, Trump threatened the pharmaceutical industry with tariffs of up to 250% on medicines and other medical products.

US focus on military products

Following Rubio's meeting with Keller-Sutter and Parmelin, the US State Department pointed the finger not at the tariffs, but at military matters. Switzerland and the USA "reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral defense cooperation", according to a statement. They also discussed "the importance of fair and balanced trade relations for the benefit of the American people".

In June, it became known that the USA and Switzerland had a different understanding of the fixed price for 36 US F-35 fighter jets to be procured. Because the USA is talking about a "misunderstanding", the purchase price alone could result in additional costs of between 650 million and 1.3 billion dollars. The popular vote in favor of new fighter jets for six billion Swiss francs was extremely close in September 2020 with 50.1 percent.