Swiss Politics

Call for Swiss to support Syrian protests

This content was published on Jul 13, 2011 Wajd Zimmermann of the Jasmine Collective told Swiss public radio on Wednesday that they had sent an open letter to this year’s president, Micheline Calmy-Rey – who is also Switzerland’s foreign minister – calling on her to support efforts to submit the Syrian case to the International Criminal Court. “Switzerland, as a country which defends…

Swiss Politics

Defence minister on visit to S. Korea and China

This content was published on Jul 13, 2011 During talks with his South Korean counterpart, Kim Kwan, in Seoul, Maurer pledged Switzerland’s commitment to its observer mission in the demilitarised zone between the two Koreas. Maurer said he hoped the situation would soon make the Swiss contingent of five officers with the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission obsolete. Switzerland has been providing observers for…

Swiss Politics

Asylum figures decline in June

This content was published on Jul 13, 2011 The Federal Migration Office said the total number of requests fell from 2,245 in May to 1,675 last month. The biggest decrease, more than 50 per cent, was recorded among asylum seekers from Eritrea while applications from Tunisians slumped by 17 per cent. Nationals from Tunisia, Eritrea and Nigeria make up the biggest groups. More…

Swiss Politics

Rail company seals SFr240m Russian deal

This content was published on Jul 12, 2011 The deal was announced by Economics Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann on the third day of his four day trade mission to Russia. Stadler Rail will supply Russian train manufacturer Transmasholding (TMH) with 100 diesel-powered drive components, which will be installed in 50 trains. The prototypes are due to be delivered at the end of 2012 and…

Swiss Politics

Diplomat to strengthen ties in Benghazi

This content was published on Jul 12, 2011 In a statement on Tuesday, the foreign ministry said the envoy would open a liaison office in Benghazi within the premises of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid programme office which was opened in March. “By sending a special envoy to Benghazi, Switzerland is signalling its intent to strengthen its presence there, and to intensify its political…

Swiss Politics

Planned government web monitoring raises fears

This content was published on Jul 12, 2011 Some proposals would require service providers to record and release client data. Others would allow the government to install Trojan viruses on computers and use mobile phone network data to ease dragnet investigations. The concept goes too far, according to the Swiss platform Digitale Gesellschaft – or “digital society”, which warns of risks if private…

Swiss Politics

Swiss-EU war of words heats up

This content was published on Jul 11, 2011 Reiterer said comments in the Sunday press by this year’s Swiss president, Micheline Calmy-Rey, were not justified. He argued that it was the EU who was waiting for proposals from the Swiss government on how to move forward. Reiterer explained that Switzerland had recognised that there were problems concerning institutional issues and had commissioned two…

Swiss Politics

Swiss aid marked by natural disasters

This content was published on Jul 11, 2011 This was below the average for OECD countries (0.49 per cent), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) said in their joint annual report published on Monday. Major humanitarian disasters in 2010 resulted in 295,000 victims and damage estimated at $130 billion. The SDC and Seco…

Swiss Politics

Left grapples with limited voter appeal

This content was published on Jul 11, 2011 They both cover the left of the political spectrum despite their different historical origins, and champion social and environmental issues. While the Social Democrats are struggling to confirm their 20 per cent share of voter support, the Greens look likely to break through the ten per cent ceiling for the first time in October’s parliamentary…

Swiss Politics

Calmy-Rey hits out at “passive” European Union

This content was published on Jul 10, 2011 In an interview with the SonntagsZeitung newspaper to mark the middle of her one-year term as Swiss president, Calmy-Rey hit out at what she described as the EU’s “passivity” in current negotiations. Conceding that discussions about a new bilateral agreement were “difficult at the moment”, Calmy-Rey said it was necessary to consolidate bilateral measures to…

Page 787 of 1365

First … 785 786 787 788 789 … Last

Swiss Politics

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

Sign in and personalize Swissinfo