Katrin Eggenberger was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs of Liechtenstein in November. In an interview, she has now spoken out about Brexit and the EFTA. She sees untapped potential for the European Economic Area’s internal market.

Katrin Eggenberger has given an interview on the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) website. She highlights the strengths of the EFTA: that it forms a relatively homogenous group of countries that promote free trade. At the same time, she expresses concern about current trends in international relations calling into question multilateral frameworks.

Membership of the European Economic Area and the EFTA form the pillars of Liechtenstein’s foreign economic policy, she says, alongside the Customs and Monetary Union with Switzerland and the World Trade Organization membership. For a country with a limited domestic market, access to the European internal market is important, adds Eggenberger.  She continues that the full potential of the internal market is yet to be unlocked, especially in services and digitalization. In this field, Liechtenstein has been keen to contribute to the European regulatory process. According to Eggenberger, smart regulation and effective enforcement of existing rules are key to removing trade barriers.


With regards to Brexit, Liechtenstein’s Foreign Minister underlines that the rights of Liechtenstein citizens and enterprises in the United Kingdom must be protected. She hopes that Liechenstein businesses will continue to have market access to the United Kingdom.

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