Switzerland Today

Hello from Bern,

Here are the latest news and updates from Switzerland on Friday.

Keystone / Roman Pilipey

In the news: Switzerland takes further action against Russia, as does the Human Rights Council in Geneva

• Switzerland has adopted more sanctions targeting Russia, the government said on Friday. On top of the individuals and companies already on the list, the latest measures will hit various dual-use industrial exports and will block Russia from the SWIFT finance system. In a separate decision, the government also plans to activate a special humanitarian permit for Ukrainians fleeing the war.
• Credit Suisse has rejected any link between the sanctions on Russia and the bank’s request to investors to destroy documents relating to certain loans. Earlier this week, the Financial Times claimed that the documents in question were linked to oligarch loans backed up by assets including yachts and private planes. Credit Suisse says the documents contained no client names and that destroying them was standard procedure.
• The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva passed a resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine, calling for a “swift and verifiable” withdrawal of troops and setting up a commission of inquiry on violations of human rights and international humanitarian law. Of the 47 current members of the Council, 32 voted in favour, with two against and 13 abstentions. Only Russia and Eritrea opposed the resolution. China abstained.

SRF

The last Swiss convoy out of Kyiv: Ambassador to Ukraine is the man of the moment

It’s not often that diplomats get dragged into the public limelight. Yesterday and today, however, one of the most-viewed faces in Swiss media was Claude Wild, the Swiss ambassador to Ukraine. Arriving back in Bern after a long overland journey via Moldova, following the evacuation of the embassy in Kyiv, Wild was omnipresent last night on Blick TV, SRF, RTS (radio and television), as well as appearing in a “diary” format in today’s Tages-Anzeiger. Online news outlet Watson even ran a story titled “the escape of the Swiss ambassador to Ukraine in 10 punchlines”.

Wild’s main message was one of anger and sadness about the “human stupidity” behind the war. Visibly emotional after several stressful weeks, Wild was also not so optimistic about what’s coming next, telling RTS that given what has been seen so far, “anything can happen” – alluding to the prospect of wider conflict in Europe. But he was also full of praise both for Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy (“his heart is in the right place”) and the Ukrainian people, for the defense they have put up and for the generosity they showed to each other (and to Swiss people) in Kyiv over the past weeks.

As for the Swiss role, with the embassy now closed, it’s not clear what the representation to Ukraine will look like. Swiss citizens in Ukraine are advised by the foreign ministry to leave, if possible, but it can only offer help via phoneExternal link. Some 280 citizens were known to be in Ukraine as of March 1, and Wild said that all who contacted his embassy last week for help managed to get out. Swiss diplomatic mediation, meanwhile, could yet be called on, as foreign minister Ignazio Cassis said today in the NZZExternal link. And of course there is still a humanitarian presence, to distribute donations and emergency aid: Wild said this will continue via a centre in Poland, while another – most likely in Moldova – is in the works.

Keystone / Georgios Kefalas

Equal representation: not just for the boardroom?

It was an interesting day for gender equality on Friday as women learned they have progressed somewhat in the management structures of big Swiss companies, but they might also soon have to join the army. On the first point, the annual Schilling ReportExternal link found that in the 20 largest stock market-listed Swiss companies, 19% of leadership roles and 30% of executive management roles are now held by women. Not astronomically high, but still a rise of five and three percentage points on the previous year, and a huge jump compared to two decades ago.

However! Women might have less time on their hands to fill these positions: in future, the government announcedExternal link, they could be called on for compulsory military or civil protection duty, just as men are currently. Here however, the reasons for such a reform – just one of a series of options under consideration – is less concerned with equality than with a more pragmatic problem; the Swiss army just doesn’t have enough people in it anymore. Women still have time to digest this possibility: another report by the defense ministry on how to tackle the problem, with more concrete propositions, is expected in summer of 2023.