Switzerland will maintain its sanctions against Russia. At least for now. With the victory of the “No” vote in the referendum on strengthened neutrality, Swiss citizens reaffirmed their support for Kiev’s cause. In fact, one of the most immediate consequences of the victory of the “Yes” would have been the suspension of economic retaliation against Moscow due to the invasion of Ukraine. Just over 47 percent of eligible voters voted.
The referendums
On September 27, Swiss citizens were called to the polls for two referendums: one on natural food, another on historic Swiss neutrality. As for the second, the referendum question asked citizens whether to introduce an even stricter definition of neutrality than the current one into the country’s Constitution.
The counting ended in the early afternoon of September 27 after the polls had closed at 12. The “No” party won with over 70 percent of the votes. In the city of Zurich the “No” vote exceeded 80 percent and in Bern it reached 85 percent. If the “Yes” vote had been passed, Switzerland would no longer have been able to impose economic sanctions on Moscow.
Bern will follow the European Union’s line from 2022. A policy that has its critics at home and in fact the national-conservative group, Pro Schweiz, has launched the referendum with the aim of introducing the change. The group is linked to the Swiss Christian Democrats, the only party that supports the referendum.