News

On 2 March, President Guy Parmelin and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signed the agreements comprising the Switzerland–EU package in Brussels. The agreements were initialled by the chief negotiators on 21 May 2025 and approved by the Federal Council on 13 June 2025. The dispatch on the Switzerland–EU package is expected to be adopted by Parliament in the course of this month.

The Federal Tax Administration has updated the course listings and bonus shares 2025.

Major General Patrick Gauchat, head of the UN peacekeeping mission UNTSO, concludes his mission at the end of February. During his term of office, he led the United Nations' first peacekeeping mission through a particularly challenging security phase marked by significant tensions and a volatile situation in the Middle East. With his leadership, experience and diplomatic skills, he made an important contribution to stabilisation and de-escalation in the region.

In the fourth quarter of 2025, Switzerland's GDP adjusted for sporting events grew by 0.2%, following a fall of 0.4% in the previous quarter.[1],[2] This stabilised overall economic development at the end of the year. Performance varied across sectors. Economic activity was supported by domestic demand.

The fifth edition of the International Cooperation Forum (IC Forum) began today in Geneva, with Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis in attendance. The central theme is the future of humanitarian aid in an international context marked by a proliferation of crises and a significant reduction in funding. The event provides a platform for exchanges between political leaders, representatives of international organisations, humanitarian actors, academic experts and private sector partners, many of whom are based in Geneva.

Ambassadors newly accredited to Switzerland present credentials

On 26 February 2026, the Federal Department of Economic Affairs (EAER) has updated the document “Interpretative aid for sanction measures”. The modifications are visible in track changes mode.

Address by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), at the opening of the IC-Forum 2026 dedicated to humanitarian aid – Check against delivery

A new preliminary report (railways) is available on the website of the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board STSB.

In the 4th quarter 2025, total employment (excluding agriculture) in Switzerland rose by 0.2% compared with the same quarter of the previous year (seasonally adjusted, +0.2% over previous quarter). Enterprises reported 4.3% fewer vacancies than a year earlier. There has been little change in the difficulty of recruiting skilled workers compared to the previous quarter, and the employment outlook remains positive. These are some of the latest findings from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).

The UN sanctions committee has amended the list of sanctioned individuals, companies and organizations. The SESAM database has been updated accordingly. On 4 March 2016 the Federal Council has adopted the Ordinance on the automatic application of the UN Security Council’s sanctions lists. Hence, the amendments of the UN Security Council’s sanctions lists enter into force in Switzerland without delay.

On 25 February, the Federal Council decided to adopt the further measures contained in the European Union's 19th package of sanctions against Russia with effect from 26 February. On 12 December last year, 64 individuals and entities were already added to Switzerland's sanctions list, and the first measures of the 19th sanctions package were adopted.