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Madam President
Excellencies
Ladies and gentlemen

Thank you very much for inviting me to the International Cooperation Forum Switzerland. It is an honour, Madam President, to open this important event alongside you, and to address all of you here today.

This conference addresses the question of what constitutes peace and how it can be achieved. For me, the word ‘peace’ is closely linked to freedom and security. When I think of freedom and security, I imagine a hike in the mountains on a summer's day. Everyone in this room will have a different image. What unites us all is the great longing that is associated with the word ‘peace’.

We live in challenging and paradoxical times. Technology and research are making remarkable and rapid progress. Basel is the perfect place to reflect on this.

In other areas progress is regressing. Around the world, we are witnessing a democratic backsliding, with a growing number of actors using military force to assert their own interests.

Switzerland is committed to doing whatever it can to prevent this development. Working for the peaceful coexistence of all peoples is one of the tenets of our constitution. Indeed, small countries like Switzerland have an existential interest in ensuring that international relations and the international order are founded on binding rules and not on the principle of ‘might is right’.

Promoting peace is the order of the day. In the next few minutes, I will explain how Switzerland is working for peace within the United Nations, and how it promotes civilian and military peace support.

Excellencies
Ladies and gentlemen

A basic condition for resolving any conflict is mutual trust. The outlook at present is bleak; we all know that. Switzerland therefore endorses a strong and efficient UN that acts as a platform for discourse.

We need to strengthen multilateralism. That is a topic I wish to highlight in my presidential year. Other basic building blocks of trust in the global community are inclusion – for example, the participation of all social groups in peaceful solutions – renewed respect for international norms, and fact-based dialogue.

One of Switzerland's priorities in the UN Security Council is climate security. This is an important issue, as peace efforts can only be effective in the long term if we take account of the changing climate.

I would also like to emphasise the role of gender equality in building a more peaceful world. The UN's Women, Peace and Security agenda is a crucial instrument in ensuring that the rights of women and girls are protected and promoted, both in times of peace and conflict. Switzerland is committed to ensuring that the Security Council utilises this instrument.

Switzerland enjoys high international standing in the field of peace support, independent of our work with the UN. We are perceived as a neutral and trustworthy actor without a colonial past or ulterior motives. We also make a valuable contribution not only to the international community, but also at a regional and local level.

Switzerland is also a sought-after mediator. We regularly receive requests from conflict parties to act as an intermediary: last year, for example, we received three new mandates in sub-Saharan Africa. Switzerland often carries out this work in complex conflicts that take place away from the public eye but which cause a great deal of suffering. In such conflicts, mediation requires perseverance.

Switzerland’s civilian peace support efforts are aimed at tackling the underlying causes of conflicts, such as the lack of economic prospects. It is committed to broadly supported decisions, human rights, the rule of law and national dialogue. It also supports social cohesion through cultural programmes. Indeed, one of the key concepts of this conference is to combine humanitarian aid, development and peace support according to overriding objectives.

The Horn of Africa, a large region affected by recurring ecological crises and conflicts, is one part of the world where Switzerland is putting this idea into practice. Switzerland supports its partner countries, including Ethiopia, using the ‘triple nexus’ approach; a combination of instruments in the areas of humanitarian aid, development cooperation and peace support. Through this approach we aim to improve the resilience of the population and contribute to long-term stability and growth. I look forward, Madam President, to hearing your thoughts on the situation in your country.

In addition to our commitment to peace policy in the UN and to civilian peace support, the Swiss Armed Forces also carry out peace support missions. Military peace support efforts create the conditions for a consolidated peace.

In the light of global polarisation and the threat from Russia, NATO states, including our neighbours Italy, France and Germany, are placing their military focus on the alliance’s eastern flank. This prioritisation means that fewer resources are available for peace support missions – even though these countries are fully aware of the importance of such missions.

This provides Switzerland with an opportunity to support the joint efforts of like-minded nations and demonstrate its solidarity. High-quality services and qualified personnel are particularly in demand. The Swiss Armed Forces' largest peace support mission is in the Western Balkans, but it also supports UN missions in Africa and the Middle East. In addition, it is involved in humanitarian demining, regional training centres in Kenya and Ghana, and the disarmament and demobilisation of former rebels in Mozambique.

When we talk about the longing for peace at the moment, we here in Switzerland think of the Russian war against Ukraine. This is not just a European issue, however. It is in everyone's interest that the global community returns to stability and that international law is respected, so that we can free up resources to fight poverty and tackle climate change.

For all these reasons, and out of solidarity with the people of Ukraine, Switzerland has agreed to organise a conference on peace in Ukraine.

Yesterday, the Federal Council announced key details of the conference and invitations will be sent out shortly.

The aim is to take the first concrete steps towards a peace process. The conference will serve as a forum where all participating states can put forward their ideas and visions.

What we need now is the commitment and support of a large part of the international community.

Excellencies
Ladies and gentlemen

Switzerland has a long tradition of peace policy. However, it is important to think beyond the activities of states and administrative bodies. In order to tackle today’s major challenges, we depend on civil society, universities and the private sector. Involving these institutions is part of this conference.

Combining instruments, joining civilian and military peace support, involving all sectors: this is how we must work, step by step, to improve the situation, even if we are a long way from a peaceful world at present. We must strive for improvements, however small. And that will require a personal commitment on the part of everyone.

Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you for that commitment.

Opening address by President Viola Amherd at the International Cooperation Forum