Switzerland: Federal Council Approves Scientific Data Agreement with China, to Be Signed During President Parmelin's China Mission
Switzerland and China are adding a new piece to their research cooperation: the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs announced on October 28 that the Federal Council had approved the Agreement on the Cross-Border Management of Scientific Data in the Context of Joint Research and Development Activities between Switzerland and China. The agreement will be signed at the end of October during Federal President Guy Parmelin's mission to China.
Parmelin's working visit to China is scheduled for October 30 to November 1. According to China's announcement on October 28, President Xi Jinping will meet him. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-Switzerland innovative strategic partnership; Switzerland was the first country on the European continent to sign a free-trade agreement with China, and in August 2026 it became the first European country to complete negotiations on upgrading that agreement.
According to the Swiss foreign ministry, relations between Switzerland and China are good and cover a wide range of areas, with more than 30 technical dialogues between the two countries' authorities and the innovative strategic partnership agreed in 2016 as one of the frameworks of the relationship. The new agreement addresses how scientific data generated in joint research and development activities between the two countries is managed across borders.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：伯尔尼联邦宫广场，瑞士联邦议会与联邦委员会所在地。照片：Axel Tschentscher，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。Photo: The Federal Palace in Bern, Switzerland. Photo: Axel Tschentscher, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
