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- Feed Preview Politics - SWI swissinfo.ch
Switzerland’s fiscal policy: defence spending tug-of-war
“We live in unprecedent times” is a common refrain in speeches and the news. When it comes to Swiss fiscal policy, is it enough to justify extraordinary spending and overriding the country’...
Graubünden at 500: a look back at early modern democracy
Canton Graubünden in eastern Switzerland is celebrating its 500th birthday this year. History professor Randolph Head sheds light on the evolution of democracy in the pioneering canton and expla...
Zelensky claims Moscow is planning to derail Swiss peace conference
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia wants to prevent the peace conference set to be held in Switzerland in June. There is a plan to do so, Zelensky told foreign diplomats, includin...
Swiss government against idea to amend S status
Switzerland’s executive body has requested the rejection of a parliamentary motion calling for changes to the rules around the revocation of S protection status for Ukrainian refugees. In a sta...
What the EU crackdown on supply chains means for Swiss companies
The European Parliament has adopted new laws to rein in companies for human rights abuses in global supply chains. This will have far-reaching impacts on Switzerland’s largest companies. After ...
Switzerland's declining military equipment sales amid global arms surge
Wars and conflicts: military spending is rising, but Switzerland is producing less defence material. Reasons for this is strict export regulations and Qatar. The world spent $2,443,000,000,000 on...
Switzerland to strengthen security at asylum centres
The Swiss government has sent proposals to parliament to strengthen security in asylum centres. The move follows revelations about cases of violence in these centres. In spring 2021, several medi...
Swiss federal police chief steps down
The director of the Federal Office of Police (Fedpol), Nicoletta della Valle, is stepping down on January 31, 2025. The Federal Council approved the 62-year-old's resignation on Wednesday. A succ...
Switzerland delays UNRWA funding decision
The Swiss government plans to issue CHF56.2 million ($61.4 million) in loans for humanitarian aid projects in the Middle East as it delays a decision on whether to unfreeze its contribution to th...
EU ‘plans to prioritise international trains’, warns Swiss railway chief
The director of Swiss federal railways, Vincent Ducrot, fears that international rail will take precedence over Swiss rail at the end of negotiations with the European Union. The EU is considerin...
Swiss vote explainer: another Covid-19 initiative?
The pandemic restrictions may have long been lifted, but some measures are still making waves politically. The Swiss electorate is once again called to the polls to vote on a bill that has a conn...
Switzerland violates right to protest: Amnesty International
The civil rights watchdog Amnesty International has criticised Switzerland for not fully respecting the right of citizens to peacefully protest. The NGO released its annual report as the world re...
Can UNRWA report restore confidence in the organisation?
The long-awaited independent report into the neutrality of UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, does not reveal any major dysfunction within the organisation. But whether th...
Austrian foreign minister visits Switzerland to discuss security and neutrality
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis received his Austrian counterpart, Alexander Schallenberg, at the Federal Palace in Bern on Tuesday. The programme for the official visit included security p...
Switzerland and frozen Russian assets: where do things stand?
Russia’s continued assault on Ukraine has inflicted a terrible human and financial toll. Many nations, including Switzerland, responded to the invasion by freezing billions of dollars of Russia...
EU membership is only solution to achieve Swiss goals, says former minister
Former Swiss government minister Joseph Deiss says future membership of the European Union is the only way for Switzerland to achieve its European goals. Switzerland must negotiate hard with Brus...
German-speaking countries unify over migrant repatriation
The interior ministers of the five German-speaking countries – Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Switzerland – have met in Basel for talks on migration and the fight against org...
‘Governments need to address the climate crisis, not the courts’
Legislators across Europe should pay close attention to the landmark ruling of the European Court of Human Rights against Switzerland, says an expert on international climate cases. The decision ...
Swiss Abroad: fog clears on tax reform in Thailand
The tax reform affecting Swiss emigrants in Thailand since January 1 contains a number of grey areas. The authorities have therefore clarified the situation in recent months, particularly with re...
Swiss president urges Putin to enter 'dialogue in difficult times'
Viola Amherd, who holds this year's rotating Swiss presidency, wrote a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin after his re-election in March, reports the SonntagsBlick newspaper. The letter i...
Switzerland signs IMF deal to support lower-income countries
Economics Minister Guy Parmelin has signed a partnership agreement that will see Switzerland contribute around CHF10 million ($11 million) to the Global Partnership in Public Finance (GPFP) initi...
Thousands of protesters in Swiss cities demand climate action
Thousands of activists took to the streets in five Swiss cities on Friday to protest against fossil fuel infrastructure and climate-damaging investments. The demonstrations were part of the "glob...
‘The Swiss Abroad deserve better representation in parliament,’ says right-wing politician
Should the Swiss Abroad have their own electoral constituency? The House of Representatives doesn’t think so. On Monday it rejected a motion by Jean-Luc Addor from the right-wing Swiss People�...
Sudan: senior Red Cross official reflects on devastating year-long war
Sudan has been in the grip of a devastating conflict for one year. Patrick Youssef, the regional director for Africa at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), talks to SWI swissinfo...
Switzerland signs international space agreement
Swiss Economics Minister Guy Parmelin signed the Artemis Accords at NASA's headquarters in the US capital of Washington D.C. on Monday. As a result, Switzerland has agreed to promote the peaceful...
Swiss universities research new forms of democracy through citizen council
From November, the Universities of Zurich and Geneva will experiment with new forms of democracy through a ‘Citizen Council 2025’ project. The aim is to investigate what such a council can co...
Swiss ministry says 11 appeals filed against Russia sanctions
Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, Switzerland has received 11 requests by individuals or companies asking to be removed from the list of sanctions, the economics ministry has said. One p...
SWISS flights to skirt Iranian airspace
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) has decided to temporarily avoid flying through Iranian airspace due to escalating tensions in the region. The airline decided on Friday evening to reroute v...
Alice Diop shares her views on the future of cinema on a grand tour of Switzerland
Award-winning French filmmaker Alice Diop is touring Switzerland as a guest of honour at several events. This week she will be at the Visions du Réel documentary film festival, after stints at a...
Swiss foreign minister reaffirms financial support for Ukraine
The head of the Swiss foreign ministry, Ignazio Cassis, reaffirmed Switzerland's financial support for Ukraine on Friday at the 3rd International Cooperation Forum (IC Forum) in Basel. Switzerlan...