President Santos announced Thursday that Switzerland plans to implement its free trade agreement with Colombia, and that the two countries have signed a judicial cooperation treaty, according to a government press release.
“Switzerland has decided to provisionally apply the free trade agreement negotiated with Colombia,” said Santos, after meeting with his Swiss counterpart, President Micheline Calmy-Rey, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
“I think it’s a step in the right direction in these increasingly strengthened relationships we have with Switzerland and Europe in general,” continued the Colombian president, before adding that Switzerland is a market of great importance within the European bloc.
Santos said that the judicial cooperation treaty between the two nations aimed to strengthen the fight against organized crime, terrorism and drug trafficking.
In December Switzerland furthered its development cooperation with Colombia by signing deals with two national agencies and the South American country’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce.