Italy and Switzerland are not only neighbours but have expanding economic ties, while the COVID-19 pandemic has brought the two countries closer together, premier Giuseppe Conte said on Tuesday.
"Italy and Switzerland don't just share a long border but also enjoy economic relations that continue to expand," Conte said at a joint press conference in Rome with Swiss president Simonetta Sommaruga
Conte thanked Switzerland for the help it gave Italy during the most acute phase of its dramatic Coronavirus outbreak earlier this year, when the country was Europe's epicentre of the virus.
"The COVID-19 crisis has shown even more how are destinies are intertwined and how much there is to gain from fruitful collaboration," Conte said.
The pandemic has taught countries that they need to cooperate to ensure the security of our citizens, he underlined.
During their talks, he and Sommaruga agreed their countries would reach a tax accord this year on some 70,000 cross-border workers who commute from Italy to Switzerland.
"We want an agreement that is as mutually beneficial as possible and we hope this can be achieved by the end of the year," Conte said.
Sommaruga praised an "encouraging" bilateral accord to extend a rail link between Simplon and Novara and said Switzerland had "learned a lot" from Italy during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sommaruga later held talks with Italy's president Sergio Mattarella and foreign minister Luigi Di Maio at the Quirinale Palace.
