*Originally published in 2022. Get E-International Relations delivered to your inbox, free of charge. As you sign up, consider becoming a paid subscriber, or make a donation, to support our work.

While Russian bombs are falling on Ukraine, the Swiss Confederation sees one of its political pillars shaking. For three months, the seemingly immutable neutrality of the country has been called into question. Yet from a historical perspective, the debate on Swiss neutrality appears to be less novel than public discussion would suggest. The current state of the foreign policy exemplifies longstanding tensions between the requirements of neutrality, the Confederation’s proximity to the European Union, and the global role of its offshore economy. To an extent, the concept of neutrality seems more adaptable now than before, but the issues that matter most remain unchanged.

On 28 February, 2022, the Swiss government decided, after some hesitation, to adopt the European Union’s package of economic sanctions against Russia. Although Swiss public opinion largely supported this choice, the decision was not politically innocuous, causing significant discussion among Swiss politicians and citizens alike on the meaning of Swiss neutrality, its extent, and its future. A general shift has occurred in the political field. While the left has radicalized its criticisms against neutrality, demanding tougher measures against Russia than those proposed by the European Union, the moderate right appears to be inclined this time to infringe the present line of Swiss foreign policy quite frankly. The president of the Centre (Christian-conservative) has become one of the fiercest advocates of exporting weapons to Ukraine, while the Radicals (liberal) have supported a closer collaboration with NATO.

Neutrality seems to have lost its seductiveness for all but the most committed nationalists among the Swiss SVP (populists). For a country in which neutrality was elevated to an almost sacred status after the Second World War—a status that influenced Switzerland’s decision not to participate in the Bretton Woods institutions until 1992, the United Nations until 2002, or the European Union until now—the expression of this stance has been striking. Numerous intellectuals have quietly intervened in the discussion to explain that neutrality should be seen only as a useful tool to defend Swiss interests in international relations. Although no other practical steps have been taken to dismantle Swiss neutrality, the political debate that has accompanied Switzerland’s adoption of the European sanctions against Russia seems to signify a rupture in the evolution of Swiss neutrality and is seen as such by most political experts.

Yet this interpretation must be qualified. When distanced from the hot reactions of the media, it becomes clear that the discussion to this point has indicated a change of tone more than a transformation of foreign policy. From an historical perspective, Swiss neutrality has not been an untouchable monolith during the last two centuries. Nor has Swiss neutrality been merely a malleable, elastic policy instrument, as some historians have suggested in an effort to legitimatize present measures. The historical reality naturally lies between these two antagonistic views. Swiss neutrality has already experienced several transformations over time, and the Ukrainian war is a new episode of this complex evolution. To understand the evolution of Swiss neutrality, it is necessary to differentiate between three dimensions of what it means to be neutral in contemporary Swiss history. This distinction is essential to accurately identify the ruptures and continuities in the present crisis.

Neutrality Distinguished

Being neutral implies, first, to refuse to take part in hostilities with other countries or to join military alliances. Since 1815, Switzerland has been, along with Sweden, the only European country—excluding the micro-states like Lichtenstein—to remain neutral. If Sweden joins NATO, as seems likely to happen, the Swiss Confederation will be able to claim exceptionality in remaining unbound by a military alliance. It is disturbing how much the current debate has silenced this essential feature of Swiss........

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