Swiss president sidelined by EU leader

The Swiss president, Alain Berset, has stressed the importance of the partnership between Europe and Asia as a key factor in strengthening multilateralism around the world. Attending a summit of more than 50 European and Asian leaders in Brussels on Friday, Berset also met representatives of several countries to discuss bilateral and international affairs. An interior ministry statement highlighted talks between Berset and the prime ministers of Russia, Spain and Thailand as well as government ministers from Bangladesh and Myanmar. However, there was no formal meeting between Berset and the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker. Berset told journalists in Brussels that it had not been possible to agree a date to review the situation after negotiations between the EU and Switzerland over a so-called framework accord hit an impasse on Tuesday. He stressed it was important to exchange opinions at a political level even if the technical negotiations are not over.