Libya has officially ended its trade and economic boycott against Switzerland.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch and agencies
The new Libyan government made the decision on Sunday and announced the news on Monday, leaving Libya free to do business with Switzerland as well as with Lebanon, which the late ruler Moammar Gaddafi had also boycotted.
The economic sanctions against Switzerland were the result of a diplomatic row between Switzerland and Libya over the arrest of Moammar Gaddafi’s son Hannibal in Geneva in July 2008.
Along with the European Union, Switzerland began lifting its sanctions against Libya in September 2011 after the United Nations Security Council gave it the green light to return SFr350 million ($399 million) of blocked funds to Libya.
According to the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Swiss business with Libya has suffered considerably over the past few years.
In 2008 Switzerland exported goods worth SFr282.3 million to Libya; this amounted to 0.13 per cent of total Swiss exports. In 2009 Swiss exports plummeted to SFr156.2 million, falling again to SFr110 million in 2010.
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
Getting back to business in Libya
This content was published on
However, there is still a lot of work to be done before business with Libya can go back to how it was under Moammar Gaddafi’s rule or even expand. Some first steps have included Switzerland re-opening its embassy in Tripoli over the weekend. This followed Switzerland setting up a liaison office in Benghazi in July.…
This content was published on
Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey said on Thursday that Switzerland wanted to hand over as soon as possible $420 million (SFr334 million) belonging to Libyan public entities “for the benefit of the Libyan people”. Speaking at an international conference on the future of Libya in Paris, she said the international community had the duty to hand…
This content was published on
With his regime on the verge of collapse, Gaddafi is believed to be using safe houses and carefully planned networks of bunkers and tunnels to evade capture. Retired engineer Erich Buser says Swiss companies helped design the bunkers. “According to my knowledge and research the bunker systems in Libya were built by Swiss and American…
This content was published on
The revolt against the regime of Moammar Gaddafi, which started in Benghazi, rapidly turned into a full-scale conflict. On August 21 the rebels entered Tripoli. The Libyan leader’s days were numbered and he finally met his end two months later as he tried to flee his hometown of Sirte.
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.