“2024 was a very busy year in the history of bilateral relations between Switzerland and Ukraine, perhaps the most busy since Ukraine gained independence 33 years ago. Photographs of world leaders gathering in June at the Ukraine Peace Summit in the Swiss resort of Bürgenstock near Lake Lucerne to discuss what a future peace process might look like will remain a testament to one of the biggest diplomatic efforts of the year.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
2024 was a very busy year in the history of bilateral relations between Switzerland and Ukraine, perhaps the most busy since Ukraine gained independence 33 years ago. Photographs of world leaders gathering in June at the Ukraine Peace Summit in the Swiss resort of Bürgenstock near Lake Lucerne to discuss what a future peace process might look like will remain a testament to one of the biggest diplomatic efforts of the year.
The year began in Davos, where Switzerland hosted a meeting of national security advisers on the implementation of the Peace Formula. In June, a summit on peace in Ukraine was held in Switzerland. In September, the country recognized the Holodomor of 1932-1933 as genocide against the civilian Ukrainian population. The conference on mine action in Ukraine-2024, which took place in October in the Swiss city of Lausanne, emphasized the desire of Switzerland to support Ukraine in its desire to demine vast territories. President of the Swiss Confederation Viola Amgerd had the honor to meet twice this year with President Volodymyr Zelenskyi in Switzerland, as well as with Prime Minister Shmyhal.
Our ministers of foreign affairs also met several times. Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk and Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Development of Education, Science and Technology – Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov also visited Switzerland on official visits. A truly impressive bipartisan agenda!
For 1,037 days, Ukraine has been defending itself against full-scale Russian military aggression against its territory, its independence, its sovereignty and its people. I was in Ukraine a little more than half of that time. 556 days have passed since I had the honor of presenting my so-called credentials – in confirmation of my Government’s decision to appoint me Ambassador to Ukraine – to President Volodymyr Zelensky in the courtyard of St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. From that day, despite all the difficulties, I had the honor of working in a war-torn country. With a hospitable and kind population and with government bodies open to cooperation.
A trusting and lasting partnership: Switzerland’s efforts at cooperation and recovery The fact that Switzerland did not start supporting Ukraine either in 2022 or in 2014 remains a little known fact. Switzerland has been supporting Ukraine through joint cooperation projects for almost thirty years. In the areas of good governance and decentralization, health care, promotion of small and medium enterprises and development of smart cities.
In 2022, the priorities were adapted to take into account the new challenges caused by full-scale military aggression. However, the general direction of our work turned out to be correct, since these areas are still very relevant. Decentralization became an important basis for municipalities to remain resilient in wartime. The demand for quality medical care, including war injury rehabilitation and mental health, will only increase in the future. A new priority we have added to our portfolio is humanitarian demining: securing farmland, forests and schools is a necessary condition for economic recovery. But also helping victims and raising public awareness of the risks posed by landmines and explosive remnants of war.
The Swiss government has announced its intention to allocate 5 billion euros for the reconstruction of Ukraine over the next 12 years, and 1.5 billion euros has been allocated for the next four years. A new cooperation program for 2025-2028 is currently being developed – a new aspect will be the involvement of the private sector, since the needs in Ukraine clearly exceed the capabilities of the public sector.
We are also proud of our humanitarian team, which provides support, has close links with regional and local authorities and local implementing partners, and can be physically present on the ground in different parts of Ukraine. This allows us to respond quickly and efficiently to changing needs.
From the moment I was appointed to this position, I always had the goal of leaving the “Kyiv bubble” and seeing the country without the glamor of the capital. Vinnytsia was my first trip outside Kyiv in July 2023. Dozens of Mirage and Tram-2000 trams plying the streets of the city can be recognized by their blue and white design in the colors of the Zürich coat of arms. With the movement of many IDPs to other cities and the needs of people with disabilities, the development of efficient public transport is gradually becoming more urgent. This fall, buses from the Swiss city of St. Gallen were delivered to Chernihiv, and soon the first red low-floor trams from Bern will appear on the streets of Lviv.
Also, Vinnytsia is a city that evokes memories of my first “Kherson cake”, which I tasted in a small relocated bakery. Supporting early recovery efforts, we help Ukrainian micro and small businesses – bakeries, cafes, textile studios. These entrepreneurs give hope to their compatriots, in particular in the front-line territory.
Not only Ukrainian, but also Swiss businesses operating in Ukraine are experiencing difficult times, but the majority of companies have remained in the country, demonstrating incredible resilience, saving jobs and paying taxes. I am pleased to see how Swiss companies make large investments in new production facilities in the Volyn and Lviv regions. I recently had the honor of signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the city of Kharkiv regarding a pilot project in which a Swiss business will provide goods for the partial repair of damaged civilian buildings in the city. This is the first step towards broader involvement of Swiss business in the process of Ukraine’s recovery.
Challenges and needs are very different in different regions of Ukraine. Therefore, we need a whole set of tools that need to be applied simultaneously. In the east, Switzerland is very active in providing humanitarian aid. We work with all the main UN agencies that play a key role in supporting Ukraine, as well as with many local partners. Localization of humanitarian aid is key to its sustainability. This year’s winter is extremely difficult for Ukrainians due to repeated attacks on critical energy infrastructure. We are providing generators, solid fuel, winter clothing, helping to repair damaged houses, heat pumps and energy systems, and have met urgent humanitarian needs with the announced winter support package for Ukraine of around €45 million.
Another little-known fact is that Switzerland was one of the first donors to believe and support Action app. Since then, electronic services and digitalization of Ukraine have been one of our key priorities. We recently signed an agreement with the Ministry of Digital Transformation on additional support for UAH 2.8 billion for the EGAP program. Meanwhile, Ukraine is ahead of most other countries and we have a lot to learn from it when it comes to providing digital public services.
We are also happy to support online education, but more than that, we are trying to revive offline learning, which is extremely important for Ukrainian children. In September of this year, in Chernihiv, I visited damaged schools that are currently being repaired with Swiss funds within the framework of the Decide project. In addition, we try to focus on vocational education, which is very popular in Switzerland. In Ukraine, it is still considered, unfortunately, not too prestigious, but it is the only way to train in-demand specialists who will be involved in the development and restoration of Ukraine.
When it comes to Switzerland, we cannot help but mention our efforts in peace building and human rights initiatives. This participation covers a wide range of topics – from the delivery of DNA analyzers for the identification of missing persons to the support of Ukrainian human rights NGOs and ensuring justice for the victims.
What does net neutrality mean in the 2020s?The military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine affected Switzerland’s foreign policy and Switzerland’s efforts in Ukraine. Switzerland is a neutral country. But this does not mean indifference. Quite the opposite. Switzerland has taken in more than 100,000 refugees from Ukraine, currently around 67,000 are still in the country. Switzerland adapted EU sanctions. During the two years of its election as a member of the UN Security Council, Switzerland repeatedly condemned Russia’s violation of international law and the UN Charter, in particular the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, in the most decisive manner.
International organizations, in particular the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross, play a very important role in alleviating the suffering of the Ukrainian people. Many partners from Geneva, such as the Geneva International Center for Humanitarian Demining, the Geneva Center for Security Sector Governance, the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action FSD, the Geneva Appeal, the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue and many others, are actively working in Ukraine. And international humanitarian law – the Geneva Conventions – is aimed at preserving at least a minimum of humanity even in an armed conflict. This precious set of rules should be kept intact. We have no alternative to this.
However, the question of Switzerland’s neutrality is still something that many Ukrainians ask me about. Let me explain it briefly here. The basis of Switzerland’s neutrality is the Neutrality Act. It applies only to the military sphere. Basically, a neutral state cannot do two things: join military alliances and support any side of the conflict militarily. But in addition to the Neutrality Act, the government is also restricted by the War Goods Act, which contains a provision that precludes the export or re-export of military equipment to belligerents. But our parliament has been talking for some time about how to find a solution to this issue. Several ideas are being discussed in the parliament.
I think that our neutrality was one of the reasons why the first Summit on Peace in Ukraine was held in Switzerland and why so many countries agreed to participate in it. Undoubtedly, this event was the peak of our bilateral relations this year. Months of preparation, coordination and hard work on both the Ukrainian and Swiss sides. And tangible results. 100 countries from around the world and international organizations. The purpose of this summit was to initiate a peace process and for the first time to start a dialogue at the level of heads of state and government about what such a peace process could look like. The joint communique is an important milestone in this regard.
There is no doubt that 2025 will be another intense year in our bilateral relations. Switzerland will continue to make efforts to support Ukraine and the international community on the way to a comprehensive, just and sustainable peace. And may 2025 bring hope for a better future to the brave Ukrainian people.
Felix BaumannAmbassador of Switzerland to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova