(Reuters): The Swiss government is bracing itself for protracted negotiations with the United States over undeclared funds stowed by US citizens in Swiss offshore bank accounts, President Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said. "Constant new demands" made by U.S. justice officials are the main stumbling block, said Widmer-Schlumpf, who is also Switzerland's finance minister, in an interview published in weekend editions of a number of Swiss regional newspapers. The two countries have for years been locked in a conflict over the fact that wealthy Americans are dodging taxes by hiding money in Swiss accounts. Washington is pressuring banks in Switzerland to divulge their names and financial details.

"If Switzerland would simply agree to what the United States is asking, a global solution (for all Swiss banks concerned) would be by found tomorrow," Widmer-Schlumpf said without indicating how long it would take to reach such a deal.

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