Switzerland today

The World Expo opens in doors in Dubai today. It is the first time the event is being held in the Arab world. Money is not a problem for the Emiratis with the hosts spending $7 billion to make it happen. Switzerland has also splashed the cash on its pavilion despite the European parliament’s call to boycott the event over UAE’s questionable human rights record.

The $17.7 million Swiss pavilion features a mountain panorama emerging from a sea of fog to present tourist destinations. SWI swissinfo.ch is a media partner and we’ll be focusing on covering some of the cool innovations from participating countries.

Ueli Maurer stepping down or a few more stairs left to climb? Keystone / Anthony Anex

Resignations – real and anticipated – of Swiss public figures are making the news today

Will he or won’t he resign soon? Swiss media is on high alert over rumours that Federal Councillor and finance minister Ueli Maurer plans to announce his resignation soon. The sprightly 70-year-old had said earlier that he will likely step down before the federal elections in 2023. However, insiders sayExternal link he could quit as early as the end of this year due to policy disagreements with his fellow cabinet members. 

One person who is definitely leaving the public stage this year is gymnast Giulia Steingruber, the first Swiss woman to win an Olympic medal in gymnastics, finishing third in the vault in Rio in 2016. She also won bronze at the World Championships, in 2017, as well as six golds at the European Championships.

“My head and my body are tired,” she said at a press conferenceExternal link in her hometown of Gossau, northeastern Switzerland. The decision was not a surprise; she had hinted at it after the recent Tokyo Olympics.

Unlike many in her sport, she never experienced verbal or physical abuse in the harsh environment of elite gymnastics, which has been plagued by allegations of abuse.

The pope’s Swiss guards are not a diplomatic corps it seems. Keystone / Ettore Ferrari

Good payments make good neighbours: Switzerland invests in eastern Europe and the Vatican to reduce frictions and improve relations. 

Brussels is in a good mood today because the Swiss parliament has finally agreed to release CHF1.3 billion as so-called cohesion payments meant to economically uplift poorer members of the EU. It was frozen as a tit-for-tat measure in a 2019 row over mutual recognition of stock market rules. The contribution is seen as the entry fee for non-EU members like Switzerland or Norway to take part in the European Single Market. 

More goodwill from the Swiss as the government announced plansExternal link to open an embassy to the Holy See. Relations with the Vatican are currently handled by the Swiss embassy in Slovenia. The new mission will also be responsible for relations with San Marino and Malta, which have until now been handled by the Swiss embassy in Italy.

For her or for him. One size fits all? Peter Lindbergh

Watches and jewellery ideas for those who plan their Christmas shopping well in advance.

The Financial Times has reported today on two interesting developments in the world of Swiss luxury. One of them is a trend for unisex watches in the high-end segment of the market. One of the arguments put forthExternal link is that timepieces were created for certain professions like pilots, divers, race car drivers, etc. that were originally dominated men but that is no longer the case today. Personally, I think most Swiss luxury watch brands are simply too lazy to develop good mechanical watches exclusively for women. Also making a smaller movement to fit a smaller watch case for women costs a lot of money and I guess it is easier and cheaper to jump on the unisex bandwagon instead.

If you’re into jewellery and tired of diamonds and the De Beers monopoly over them, perhaps coloured gemstones like rubies, emeralds and sapphires might be just the thing for you or a loved one. However, the problem with buying these stones is that most of us have no clue what to look for while it much easier with diamonds and their 4Cs: carat, clarity, cut and colour. Swiss gem lab Gübelin is listening and has come up with a new quality classificationExternal link to help us novices and to facilitate online purchases with confidence. Happy shopping!