Swiss Politics

‘Bilateralism is in our DNA’ – interior minister

This content was published on Mar 1, 2014 In an interview on Saturday with La Liberté, a Fribourg newspaper, Berset admitted that while one should neither under- nor overestimate the effects of the vote, “it’s the first time that the Swiss have chosen not to create or enlarge bilateral agreements”. This, he continued, could put in doubt Switzerland’s EU policy of the past…

Swiss Politics

Weapons exports take a nosedive

This content was published on Feb 28, 2014 Last year, CHF461.2 million ($520 million) in Swiss weapons materiel was sent to other countries, compared to about CHF700 million in 2012 according to the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). In the autumn of 2013, the Senate recommended implementing less stringent laws which would allow the weapons industry to export to countries with records…

Swiss Politics

Swiss investigate Yanukovych for money laundering

This content was published on Feb 28, 2014 The foreign ministry said all assets and bank accounts held by Yanukovych and 19 other people of his entourage in Switzerland were blocked. The government wished to take “all measures necessary to avoid the risk of any misappropriation of financial assets of the Ukrainian state,” a statement said. The aim was “to prevent these assets…

Swiss Politics

Fight over benefits and living on little money

This content was published on Feb 28, 2014 Life has not been kind to Maria C.* (real name withheld). Growing up in a farmer’s village outside Zurich, she is a child of an immigrant mother who barely spoke the local language. When her Swiss father died, the three-year old was sent away to a home until she was 11 and considered unfit for…

Swiss Politics

European Union wants Swiss in asylum group

This content was published on Feb 28, 2014 The European Parliament stated on February 11 – two days after the vote to curb immigration – that Switzerland’s vote violated existing agreements on the free movement of people. According to new information obtained by Swiss public radio SRF, on that same day, EU officials also gave the green light for the Swiss to continue…

Swiss Politics

Email and telephone surveillance rises in 2013

This content was published on Feb 27, 2014 Real-time monitoring by the Post and Telecommunications Surveillance Service, which involves listening in on telephone conversations and reading email correspondence, increased 22% to 3,945 instances in 2013, the justice ministry said on Thursday. About a third of surveillance measures were used to investigate violations of the narcotics act and offences against property. The remainder was…

Swiss Politics

Media take sides in Credit Suisse tax case

This content was published on Feb 27, 2014 The Neue Zürcher Zeitung piped up in defence of Credit Suisse. “Senator Levin showered Credit Suisse with blind criticism,” wrote the newspaper in an editorial entitled “Disconcerting spectacle”. According to the NZZ, Senator Carl Levin – the chairman of the US senate’s permanent subcommittee on investigations – sees tax evasion as the “core business of…

Swiss Politics

Dougan blames rogue bankers for US tax woes

This content was published on Feb 26, 2014 Dougan, himself an American citizen, told US senators on Wednesday that Credit Suisse only uncovered “scattered evidence” of improper conduct, and its top managers were not aware that a small group of Swiss-based private bankers had helped US customers hide income and assets. “We deeply regret that – despite the industry-leading compliance measures we have…

Swiss Politics

‘Swiss will come back to the EU on their knees’

This content was published on Feb 26, 2014 The debate, taking place two weeks after 50.3% of Swiss voters approved a proposal to reintroduce immigration quotas, had started peacefully. But when László Andor, EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, declared that “quotas are contrary to the principle of free movement that the EU enjoys with Switzerland”, this was too much for…

Swiss Politics

Swiss-led OSCE seen as ideal mediator in Ukraine

This content was published on Feb 26, 2014 Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter – who this year also acts as Swiss president and OSCE chairman – appointed senior diplomat Tim Guldimann as special envoy for Ukraine at the beginning of the week. Burkhalter also travelled to New York and Washington to discuss and present a possible role for the OSCE in Ukraine’s transition period…

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‘Bilateralism is in our DNA’ – interior minister

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Weapons exports take a nosedive

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Swiss investigate Yanukovych for money laundering

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Fight over benefits and living on little money

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European Union wants Swiss in asylum group

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Email and telephone surveillance rises in 2013

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Media take sides in Credit Suisse tax case

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Dougan blames rogue bankers for US tax woes

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‘Swiss will come back to the EU on their knees’

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Swiss-led OSCE seen as ideal mediator in Ukraine

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