As of today, Switzerland heads the UN Security Council, but its image is crumbling

Historic day: Switzerland heads the United Nations Security Council for the first time since Monday. In that role, the country wants to live up to its reputation as a mediator and bridge-builder, as UN ambassador Pascale Baeriswyl said in the media – but the reputation of traditionally neutral Switzerland has had since the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

When the Swiss once again assert their neutrality and claim a special role, foreign diplomats and politicians increasingly roll their eyes. Switzerland’s reputation is cracking. “In the future, our neighbors will wonder even more to what extent we want to accommodate Switzerland politically,” says political scientist Christoph Frei of the University of St. Gallen:

Expect more from Switzerland abroad

Speaking of sanctions against Russia, when the war started, the government in Bern initially said Switzerland was neutral and would not participate. The turnaround soon came under pressure from abroad, even though Frei says he only partly agrees. “For example, when it comes to commodities trade, the authorities pretend not to know how important trade via Switzerland is for Russia,” he told the German news agency (dpa).

Keyword oligarch funds: At the end of 2022, nearly eight billion Swiss francs were blocked by Russians close to President Vladimir Putin. In Switzerland, however, many more billions are suspected.

Speaking of weapons, Switzerland refuses to pass on ammunition it sold to Ukraine to allies. In Berlin, the waving of migrants to Germany also annoyed, in the financial world the undermining of shareholder rights in the rescue of Credit Suisse. Numerous lawsuits are pending.

prominent critics

However, the Swiss Foreign Ministry says it has only heard critical comments in the media. “Although the media has some influence on a country’s image, it is not the only factor,” it said when asked. “So far we have no evidence of a significant deterioration in our general perception that would have lasting negative consequences.”

The criticism comes from prominent quarters: for example Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of the NATO Defense Alliance: “It’s not about neutrality. It’s about the right of self-defense,” he said in Davos in January. “In my opinion, neutrality dates back to the last century,” said Munich Security Conference President Christoph Heusgen. Switzerland must help defend the international legal order.

“Sanctions are only as strong as the political will behind them,” US ambassador Scott Miller told the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Switzerland could certainly block 50 or 100 billion francs more in oligarch funds.

“We expect Switzerland to jump over its neutralist shadow in certain areas,” German ambassador Michael Flügger said on television. “Switzerland has ruined its reputation,” National Councilor Gerhard Andrey (Greens/FR) said when parliament decided not to lift the ban on sending ammunition to Ukraine.

There was also public criticism this week from former Swiss ambassador Thomas Borer. In an op-ed in the Washington Post, he called for neutrality to be abolished. This has had its day, is harmful and no longer fulfills its function.

From “special to incident”

As of February 24, Switzerland ranked 21st out of 40 countries in the Kiel Institute for the World Economy’s Ukraine support tracker. It covers humanitarian, financial and military aid.

Switzerland always claims a special role for itself. Politically, she likes to do her own thing – except when it comes to economics and market access. It only joined the United Nations in 2002. Located in the heart of Europe, it rejects EU membership and broke off years of negotiations in 2021 to update its bilateral agreements. “We have gone from a special case to a problem and must be careful not to become a social case by clinging to yesterday’s stories,” warns Frei.

Credit Suisse is putting pressure on its image, but Switzerland remains popular

The CS debacle, in which shareholder rights were undermined by the emergency law, could also damage the image, says Diana Ingenhoff, professor of Organizational Communication and Public Diplomacy at the Swiss University of Freiburg of the dpa. “There are transfer effects: Switzerland is positioning itself as a strong financial centre, Swiss banks benefit from Switzerland’s image. Credit Suisse even had the name of the country in the title. If something goes wrong, it also affects the image of the country.”

However, Switzerland is still very popular in the surveys. Johanna Gollnhofer, director of the Institute of Marketing at the University of St. Gallen, says: “The reputation of a brand or a country are associations in the mind. They change very slowly, something would have to happen over the years, otherwise little will stick in the end. Switzerland is known as a safe haven, close to nature and reliable, which will not be destroyed in the short term.”

The Presence Switzerland Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for promoting Switzerland’s image abroad. Everything is fine, she reported after the most recent survey in December 2022, Switzerland is ahead of Germany, Sweden, Great Britain and others. In the November 2022 Ipsos survey of perceptions of countries around the world, Germany ranked 1st and Switzerland ranked 7th.

Switzerland on its way to “becoming a normal European country”

Frei sees the need for action: “As a prosperous, often privileged country, we finally need to spend significantly more money, both for humanitarian aid and for security.” He promotes a Swiss contribution to NATO. Switzerland benefits from the fact that NATO finances all aspects of security. “To some extent, NATO is a donut – and Switzerland is the hole in the middle,” said US Ambassador Miller.

“Switzerland usually holds its positions as long as possible and often only reacts to strong outside pressure,” says Ingenhoff. “Under the current social and media circumstances, in view of Switzerland’s image, it would be advisable to position yourself more proactively as an innovative, creative helper and become more involved in conflict prevention, peacebuilding and humanitarian aid,” she says .

And for political scientist Frei, it is clear: “We should get off our high horse and accept that we, too, are on our way to becoming a normal European country.” (dpa/abi) (bzbasel.ch)