We celebrate thirty years of SwissCore, demonstrating Swiss commitment to work with our European partners notwithstanding the political obstacles along the way.
Thirty years ago, in August 1995, our visionary predecessors established a Swiss liaison office for European research, innovation and education – SwissCore. Inspired and supported by the German colleagues from the KoWi liaison office in Brussels, SwissCore took shape over the months and officially opened its doors in a shared office space with our Swedish colleagues on Rue du Trône 98, where we still operate. The opening speech that was held during the opening ceremony in February 2026 proclaimed that “in the current circumstances, our presence in Brussels is even more important as it demonstrates the determination of Swiss researchers to overcome the political obstacles and their commitment to European research”. Although this was said in the context of the negotiations on the Bilateral I agreements between Switzerland and the EU in the 1990s, it remains true today: While now, in 2025, the political process to secure Swiss association to Horizon Europe and other programmes is progressing, Swiss researchers, innovators and educators have made it clear that they intend to collaborate with their European partners and the EU, regardless of the state of the CH-EU relationship.
On the occasion of our anniversary, SwissCore held a high-level anniversary conference on 3 September 2025 to celebrate the impact of 30 years of Swiss-EU collaboration in research, innovation and education on the one hand, while also looking ahead at the next generation of programmes and Swiss involvement in addressing global challenges. The colleagues who came to congratulate SwissCore and emphasise the mutual importance of Swiss-EU collaboration included Swiss State Secretary Martina Hirayama, Commission Executive Vice-President Roxana Mînzatu, European Commission Director-General Marc Lemaître, European Parliament Vice-President Victor Negrescu, ERC President Maria Leptin, EIC President Michiel Scheffer and many more. Our European colleagues underlined that Swiss-EU collaboration is essential in order for Europe to remain a global leader in research and innovation. In that spirit, Executive Vice-President Mînzatu stressed that “Switzerland is more than a partner for the EU, Switzerland is an inspiration”.
We showcased successful Swiss-EU projects through panel discussions, video messages and a booklet containing 30 stories from the past 30 years. These stories demonstrate the mutual benefits of working together and how Swiss contributions have supported European excellence. The event also showed the high relevance of European collaboration in education, research and innovation for Swiss science and education. All of our Swiss colleagues, including three Members of the Swiss Parliament, reaffirmed Switzerland’s dedication to European collaboration, particularly in light of its expected association to Horizon Europe later this year.
Finally, the speakers emphasised that allocating budgets to European collaboration in education, research and innovation is a strategic investment, especially in times of geopolitical uncertainty when close partners with shared values are harder to find.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the whole SwissCore team for making this anniversary celebration possible, as well as, to all our close friends and partners in Brussels and Switzerland alike, and finally to all SwissCore alumni in whose footsteps we follow.