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Why is Switzerland’s UN Security Council bid controversial?

Helena Bachmann
Helena Bachmann - [email protected]
Why is Switzerland’s UN Security Council bid controversial?
The United Nations Security Council, the body that Switzerland seeks to join. Photo by Andrea Renault/AFP / AFP

For the first time in its history, the government is seeking a seat on the United Nations body, overseeing world peace and security. But why are some in Switzerland critical of this move?

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In an unprecedented move spurred by the war in Ukraine, Switzerland has applied for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council (UNSC) for the years 2023 and 2024.

The National Council, the lower house of parliament, voted by 125 to 56 on March 10th to support the candidacy, believing the  membership will strengthen the country’s international standing.

“Our candidacy is in the interest of Switzerland as much as in that of the world,” Swiss President Ignazio Cassis told the lawmakers.

READ MORE: Switzerland one step closer to UN Security Council seat despite neutrality concerns

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What is the role of the Security Council?

Simply put, it is to maintain world peace and security, although this mandate is decidedly not simple.

According to the UN, the Council “takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some cases, the Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorise the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security”.

There are 15 members of the UNSC but only five are  permanent: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The other 10 seats — one of which Switzerland is seeking — are attributed on a two-year rotating basis by geographic regions. Switzerland and Malta are the only candidates for the two seats allocated to western Europe up for election in New York in June.

Why does Switzerland want a seat on the Security Council?

Switzerland did not join the UN until 2002 - more than 50 years after its founding - doing so after a referendum.

Despite not being a founding member, the Swiss city of Geneva was considered as the site of the UN, but the bid was rejected due at least in part to ties to the failed League of Nations, which was also headquartered in the western Swiss city. 

Geneva remains however the European headquarters of the UN

Since then, the country has assumed the role of an observer and member of numerous specialised agencies.

Membership in the Security Council is in Switzerland's interest, according to the government, as it will allow the country to engage for peace and security.

“For a medium-sized export-oriented country, this is of great importance. A seat on the Security Council also improves access to important governments and allows Switzerland to make itself better heard in matters of foreign and security policy”, the Federal Council said.

And a seat on the Council is not a breach of Swiss neutrality, according to the Foreign Ministry (FDFA).

 “In the current global situation, independent voices such as that of Switzerland, which are committed to an international order based on law and can mediate between different parties, are more necessary than ever”, FDFA said.

READ MORE: Sanctions on Russia: Is Switzerland still a neutral nation?

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Not surprisingly, Switzerland’s bid to join the UNSC is sparking controversy.

The bone of contention is the country’s neutrality — that is, the longstanding policy of non-involvement in foreign affairs.

Most MPs, however, support the government in the move, as the vote in the National Council has shown.

“It is clearly in times of crisis that the world needs, within the Security Council, to have the voice of a neutral, non-aligned country”, MP Laurent Wehrli told Switzerland's RTS public broadcaster.

Another deputy, Charles Juillard, also noted that “our peace-building activities and our diplomatic role must also continue in international forums”.

However, the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), which has always opposed Switzerland’s involvement in any international matters, is maintaining its staunch opposition to the plan.

“Entry to the Security Council would torpedo Swiss neutrality. It is an uncalculated risk for our country,” said SVP lawmaker Roger Koppel.

Historian and former diplomat Paul Widmer agrees that Switzerland “should not aim at a seat in the Security Council”.

“If Switzerland is faithful to its traditional neutral policy, it probably would have to abstain often from casting a vote in the Security Council. This would not be in the interest of this body, which should be strengthened and not weakened”, Widmer told The Local on Tuesday.

The abstentions would also “not be in the interest of Switzerland, which has acquired an important role as an honest broker in difficult international situations. By going into the Security Council, the danger is too big that [Switzerland] will diminish its credibility and lose its high standard as a neutral actor”, he added.

READ MORE: EXPLAINED: Why is Switzerland always neutral?

 

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