The initiative would have prevented the nation from imposing sanctions unless approved by the UN.
Russia openly backed the initiative, which would have required Switzerland to seek UN approval for sanctions
Published37 minutes ago
Voters in Switzerland have overwhelmingly rejected a stricter interpretation of the country’s tradition of diplomatic neutrality
More than 70% of Swiss voters rejected proposals that would have prevented the European nation from imposing sanctions without UN approval, official results showed
The move would have also prevented Switzerland from pursuing closer ties with the Nato military alliance
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has reopened the debate around Switzerland’s centuries-old non-alignment
Moscow openly backed the initiative, which was supported by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP) and opposed by the federal government and all other major parties
Lukas Golder, co-director of research institute Gfs.bern told Swiss public broadcaster SRF that Swiss voters had not rejected embracing its neutrality but that the vote showed Switzerland was in favour of sanctions against Russia
“People have a clear idea of what Switzerland’s neutrality is supposed to achieve,” he said
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Source: BBC News English
