Swiss Abroad

Switzerland signs Arms Trade Treaty

This content was published on Jun 4, 2013 Paul Seger, Switzerland’s permanent representative to the United Nations, signed the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) in New York on Monday on behalf of Switzerland. He described the treaty as “strong, robust, balanced … a basis for the responsible international trade of weapons”. Seger emphasised how important it is that the ATT enters into force and…

Swiss Politics

Switzerland ʻextremely concernedʼ about Syria

This content was published on Jun 3, 2013 Switzerland is also asking those involved in the fighting and the international community to do everything possible to find a political solution that meets the aspirations and needs of the Syrian citizenry, the ministry said in a statement on Monday. “The violence must end,” the ministry added. “The civilian population must immediately be allowed to…

Swiss Politics

Reminders of the Cold War

This content was published on Jun 3, 2013 In the 1970s and 1980s the Stalinist regime had hundreds of thousands of steel and concrete bunkers built, out of fear of foreign invasion. Today they have lost their military purpose. Some were dismantled and removed, others are slowly mouldering away or have been covered by vegetation; others have found a use as storerooms or…

Maurer takes a shot with diplomats

This content was published on May 31, 2013 The longstanding tradition, which has its origins in the Swiss military’s shooting practice, is the world’s largest marksmanship event. More than 120,000 participants took part in similar events across the country, competing in either the 300-metre rifle shoot or the 50 and 25-metre pistol shoot. On Friday, Maurer and the other shooters were forced to aim into the…

Swiss Politics

Tight security keeps Swiss happy

This content was published on May 31, 2013 Nine out of ten people interviewed for a survey carried out by the school’s military academy and Center for Security Studies said they felt in secure in Switzerland, a figure that remained unchanged over the previous year’s. The number of those who were optimistic about the country’s future rose however, with 82 per cent of…

Swiss Politics

Media grills ‘political hot potato’

This content was published on May 30, 2013 The front page of Zurich’s Tages-Anzeiger featured a gigantic black cube in front of the Swiss parliament building, meant to represent the “tax deal black box” that Swiss parliament is to vote on in the coming weeks. The Blick tabloid pointed out that “the Americans are leaving the Swiss in the dark. They will only…

Swiss Politics

Final SBC survey

This content was published on May 29, 2013 For this survey, 1,417 citizens across the country were interviewed over the phone in the second half of May. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.7%.

Asylum and cabinet reforms set for clear result

This content was published on May 29, 2013 The final poll on the issues, commissioned by the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation and published ten days ahead of the nationwide vote on June 9, found that 57 per cent of the respondents said they would approve the amended asylum law. Just under 30 per cent said they would reject the reform. A broad coalition of…

Swiss Politics

US expats feel the burden of FATCA

This content was published on May 28, 2013 “People are very angry and upset but some are really scared,” declared Jackie Bugnion, a director and tax specialist at American Citizens Abroad (ACA), a Swiss-based organisation that calls itself “The voice of Americans overseas”. Alongside Eritrea, the United States is unique in requiring its overseas citizens – estimated to be around six million according…

Swiss Politics

FATCA sounds death knell of banking secrecy

This content was published on May 28, 2013 Recent weeks have seen an unprecedented ramp-up of international efforts to put an end to banking secrecy. The Group of 20 major economies wants automatic exchange of tax information at a world level, and it wants it soon. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is setting out the relevant international standards in the…

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