The Week in Switzerland
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Welcome to our selection of some of the biggest – and most colourful – stories in Switzerland over the past seven days.
While police forces across the country currently have their hands full with carnival revellers, many Swiss politicians are trying to work out how to deal with the volatile US president. Parliamentarians have also been busy during the first week of the spring session – we look at the big decisions.
And are the rumours true that Céline Dion will make a special appearance at the Eurovision Song Contest in Basel in May?
The car-crash meeting between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House last Friday got all the headlines, but Swiss concerns over the reliability of the United States are growing.
“Within a short space of time, Donald Trump has elevated uncertainty to a political principle,” Thierry Burkart, president of the centre-right Radical-Liberal Party, said on Thursday. The US was moving away from a classic liberal democracy and “into the mindset of autocratic states”, he said. “This could have long-term economic consequences, particularly for the US itself.” Switzerland must react to this geopolitical uncertainty, Burkart said, arguing the Alpine country needed clear security and defence policy priorities in order to face up to the changed situation.
On Tuesday, the Tages-Anzeiger said several parliamentarians were beginning to have doubts about the purchase of American F-35 jets, fearing Trump might not accept a contract that is advantageous for Switzerland. Switzerland agreed a fixed price of CHF6 billion ($6.75 billion) for the planes, but production costs are likely to rise.
On Sunday, leaders of the left-wing Social Democratic Party said they were against a free trade agreement with the US. “Do we align ourselves with Europe, which upholds the rule of law and democracy, or do we send a signal to the world that we put profit above all else?” party co-president Cédric Wermuth asked rhetorically.
- Thierry Burkart interview in the Tages-AnzeigerExternal link (German, paywall)
- Parliamentarians want to review purchase of US fighter jetsExternal link – Tages-Anzeiger (German, paywall)
- Social Democrats reject free trade deal with the US – Swiss News Agency Keystone-SDA (German)
- How Trump’s orders could affect Switzerland – SWI
The spring parliamentary session got underway on Monday – what have been the biggest decisions in the first week?
On Monday parliament decided Swiss agriculture would be spared the government’s austerity measures from 2026 to 2029.
On Tuesday parliament extended indirect subsidies for the regional and local press from the current CHF30 million to CHF40 million. The early delivery of newspapers will also be subsidised to the tune of CHF25 million a year.
The new Swiss Air Passenger Data Act is ready for the final vote in parliament after the Senate waved the legislation through in just a few minutes on Tuesday. The legal basis will let Switzerland establish a national system for processing travellers’ data – a practice already in force in many countries. The ultimate goal is the fight against crime and terrorism.
On Wednesday parliament approved an agreement with the United Kingdom that introduces equivalence between the countries’ regulatory frameworks, allowing reciprocal entry into each other’s financial services markets.
Eight femicides – the gender-related killing of a woman by a man – took place in eight weeks in 2025 in Switzerland, say women’s associations. The total number in 2024 was 19.
“Most femicides take place in the year following separation, as this is often when the perpetrator loses all power over his victim and tries to regain it by committing femicide,” said Philippe Bigler, director of the Malley-Prairie reception centre, which has around 20 studio flats that can accommodate victims of domestic violence and their children.
Bigler told Swiss public television, RTS, that he had noted an ever-increasing demand. “In 2023, 80 women were unable to enter the centre on the day they wanted to. In 2024, 120 women were unable to enter the centre.”
Julia Meier, a member of women’s organisation Brava, said the government must finally take this situation seriously. “The main problem in Switzerland is the lack of resources,” she said. “That’s why we’re calling for CHF350 million ($395 million) for prevention work, for the protection of those affected, for appropriate prosecution and for an overall strategy coordinated at the various levels of the Swiss federal system.”
This year’s Eurovision Song Contest is just a couple of months away and the Swiss organisers are moving up a gear.
On Wednesday they announced that Zoë Më (pictured) will represent Switzerland at the competition held in her hometown of Basel from May 13-17. The Fribourg-based singer’s song will be unveiled on Monday morning.
Also on Wednesday the organisers said the second wave of tickets for the competition’s main acts will go on sale on March 27. Meanwhile, tickets for side events such as the EuroClub and the U60 disco will also go on sale in the coming days and weeks.
But are the rumours true that Céline Dion, the Canadian singer who won Eurovision for Switzerland in 1988, will make a guest appearance? “We’re working on it,” said Moritz Stadler, Eurovision executive producer.
- The Céline Dion announcement (RTS, French)
- Zoë Më articleExternal link (RSI, Italian)
- Switzerland at Eurovision: the colourful hits and misses (SWI)
Next week begins with a 4am bang on Monday as Basel’s Fasnacht – Switzerland’s largest carnival – kicks off. Monday is also exactly 20 years since Swiss environmentalist and human rights activist Bruno Manser was declared dead after disappearing in a Malaysian rainforest.
On Tuesday the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) will reveal how much war materiel Switzerland exported last year and to which countries.
Switzerland will have a new Federal Councillor on Wednesday – parliament will pick either Markus Ritter or Martin Pfister to replace Viola Amherd.
Picture of the week
Ueli Schmezer and Fabienne Stämpfli, the newest members of the House of Representatives, take the oath of office in Bern on Tuesday. Schmezer has been a musician, journalist and television presenter. Here he is in 1983External link, with a Swiss-German version of The Message, a rap classic by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. (Keystone/Alessandro della Valle)
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