The Swiss clearly reject the neutrality initiative

According to SRF forecasts, 71 percent voted against the initiative. This was launched by the right-wing conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP) around the politician Christoph Blocher.

The initiative should anchor stricter neutrality in the constitution.

Zurich. Swiss voters are likely to reject an initiative on Sunday to significantly tighten the country's traditional neutrality. According to SRF forecasts, 71 percent voted against the so-called neutrality initiative, while 29 percent voted for it.

The bill provided for a constitutional ban on the adoption of economic sanctions and cooperation with military alliances such as NATO. The Swiss government and most political parties had spoken out against the project. According to surveys, there were signs of rejection.

The initiative was launched by the right-wing conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP) around the influential politician Christoph Blocher, who invested almost four million francs from his private assets in the campaign. The trigger for the move was Switzerland's decision to join the European Union's sanctions against Moscow following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Blocher argued that this threatened the country's neutral status. Swiss neutrality must be permanent, armed and comprehensive in order to remain credible, he explained before the vote.

Support for this position also came from Moscow: Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova had criticized Switzerland's previous “flexible neutrality”.

However, opponents of the initiative warned of international isolation and threats to national security. Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis emphasized that if accepted, Switzerland would no longer be able to carry out joint military exercises with NATO and would be severely restricted in an emergency.

The neutrality of the Alpine country has been recognized under international law since 1815 and enshrined in the constitution since 1848. It saved the country from involvement in the two world wars. Government legal experts pointed out that the current flexible approach to neutrality was a recipe for success that should not be replaced by rigid constitutional rules.