The Swiss militia had a historic call up to fight the spread of the coronavirus.
Keystone / Laurent Gillieron
The Swiss army says it is ready to tackle a possible second wave of coronavirus cases and has planned accordingly, says spokesman Stefan Hofer.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA/jdp
It can provide soldiers to help if called upon to do so by the government, he said on Wednesday, adding that the army will only carry out services that society can’t provide.
Specific units or entire battalions are also ready to provide support to the authorities within three or four days. According to the army spokesman, the army has sufficient personnel for a second wave or in an emergency.
The army got a historic call-up in March to help tackle the initial wave of coronavirus infections. After nearly three months of a declared “emergency situation” and national semi-confinement, the number of coronavirus cases and deaths dropped sharply and restrictions have been gradually eased.
However, the number of cases has recently been creeping up again and the government has responded notably by imposing the wearing of masks on public transport nationwide.
Since the cantons have reassumed their traditional decision-making powers, some have taken further steps to contain the spread of the virus, such as compulsory wearing of masks in shops in western cantons Vaud and Jura.
On Wednesday, four north-western cantons (two cantons of Basel, Solothurn and Aargau) also stepped up protective measures, following the example of Ticino in the south.
They are now limiting the maximum number of guests in restaurants, bars, clubs and events to 100 instead of the previous 300. Only those establishments and events that guarantee a minimum distance of 1.5 metres between people and require their customers to wear masks are exempt from the new limit there.
Popular Stories
More
Demographics
How retiring baby boomers could crash Swiss property market
Canadian forest fires trigger unhealthy air warnings in Switzerland
This content was published on
The smoke from Canada is causing poor air quality in Switzerland. Some measuring stations recorded values on Wednesday that are considered unhealthy.
This content was published on
Parliament has unanimously approved the government's direct counter-proposal to the popular initiative of the Swiss Freedom Movement.
This content was published on
Gabriel Brenna, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Liechtensteinische Landesbank (LLB) since 2021, has been appointed head of Raiffeisen.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss army ends coronavirus deployment
This content was published on
The military has officially ended its involvement in relief measures associated with the coronavirus pandemic after 107 days on duty.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.