The European Union’s relations with Switzerland could collapse if negotiations on Switzerland’s place in the EU’s internal market fail, European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic told Der Spiegel magazine. .

Brussels has been pushing for years for a treaty to cap a series of bilateral agreements and oblige Switzerland to systematically adopt changes to the rules of the single market.

Talks between Bern and its biggest trading partner were halted in May over fears of ceding too much sovereignty to the bloc.

Mr Sefcovic, who oversees EU-Switzerland affairs, said: “The EU’s relations with Switzerland are in danger of falling apart.

“If further negotiations were not successful, the bilateral agreements still in force would gradually expire and render our relationship obsolete at some point.”

Switzerland will have to give assurances that it will abide by the rules of the EU’s internal market if Berne enters into new negotiations, Sefcovic said.

The EU commissioner’s comments sparked calls for Nexit in the Netherlands, with activists saying richer countries outside the EU, like Switzerland and Norway, are less desperate than Brussels to give in.

Activists from Nexit Denktank wrote: “Switzerland is not prepared to give up its sovereignty.

“The EU seems more desperate than Switzerland for a new deal.

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“In short, Switzerland pays the EU very little and the Brussels bureaucrats don’t like that.

“Switzerland does not seem to fold.”

The European Union wants Switzerland to accept a dynamic alignment of its laws with EU law, a level playing field, a dispute settlement mechanism and regular contributions to EU funds for the most senior members. poor in the EU.

Sefcovic reiterated the EU’s demands in the Spiegel interview.

He added: “We urgently need to know from Switzerland if it is serious about negotiating with us.”

In November, the European Union urged Switzerland to establish a clear timetable for solving the problems of the EU’s internal market by January.

Sefcovic told the Spiegel: “We need to know what we want to talk about when – to make it clear that the discussion will not last 20 or 30 years.”

EU-Switzerland economic relations are governed by more than 100 bilateral agreements dating back to 1972.

A collapse of long-term relations could jeopardize Switzerland’s de facto membership in the EU common market that Berne is keen to maintain.

Sefcovic gave the example of medical devices, which can only be sold in the EU with the proper certification and which would not be possible without the proper contracts.