GENEVA, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- Switzerland pledged Thursday to renew a 1.3 billion U.S. dollar (1.28 billion Swiss franc) financial package with the European Union (EU), its most important trading partner.
The promise of the payment to the 28-nation bloc was made during a visit by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to the Swiss capital Bern on Thursday.
Ties between the EU and Switzerland became strained following a Swiss referendum vote in 2014 to re-introduce immigration quotas for EU citizens.
After the Swiss parliament last year adopted a system that skirted limits of entry for newcomers by enabling the favoring of local residents in country's job market, ties between the two thawed.
Swiss President Doris Leuthard and Juncker also discussed cooperation on internal security and migration with the EU.
During Juncker's visit, Switzerland and the EU also signed an accord on trading CO2 emissions, according to Swissinfo, the website of the Swiss national broadcaster.
"We put the differences of the past behind us and we looked ahead to a future with solutions acceptable for both sides and under clear conditions," said Leuthard.
Juncker said that the EU wants good relations with Switzerland as it is an integral part of Europe.
"Things are not only moving, but they are moving in the right direction," he said.
Switzerland is not a member of the EU, but it has more than 120 bilateral agreements with Brussels and needed to update existing accords and forge some new deals.
Since 2008, Switzerland has contributed to the bloc's "Cohesion Fund" aimed at reducing economic and social disparities within the EU and which was renewed on Thursday.
Switzerland is the EU's third biggest trading partner and the ten-year program was up for renewal.
About 1.1 billion Swiss francs are aimed at vocational training programs and efforts to combat youth unemployment in EU member states in central and eastern Europe over the next ten years.
The remaining 200 million Swiss francs are destined for migration aid in the whole of the EU.
