Former Federal Councillor criticizes Calmy-Rey criticizes Keller-Sutter: "She should have said nothing"
Micheline Calmy-Rey sharply criticizes Switzerland's foreign policy. She criticizes President Karin Keller-Sutter's stance on US policy and warns against paying too high a price in the EU framework agreement.
23.02.2025, 06:46
23.02.2025, 08:30
SDA
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- Micheline Calmy-Rey has commented on Trump's negotiations with Putin.
- The former Federal Councillor criticizes President Karin Keller-Sutter for her statements on US Vice President J.D. Vance's speech.
- She is also skeptical about the new framework agreement with the EU.
According to Micheline Calmy-Rey, President Karin Keller-Sutter surprised the Europeans with her statements on the US Vice President's speech. "In my opinion, she would have been better off saying nothing," said the former Federal Councillor in an interview with the SonntagsZeitung newspaper.
She sees this as a sign that Switzerland is increasingly distancing itself from Europe. "I think there is a certain calculation behind it," said Calmy-Rey. Keller-Sutter had described US Vice President J.D. Vance's speech at the Munich Security Conference as a "plea for direct democracy".
When asked whether Switzerland wanted to be on good terms with the USA, Calmy-Rey said: "Official Switzerland is trying to appease the USA, but America already no longer sees us as an allied country." She pointed out that Switzerland had already been removed from the list of countries with unlimited access to AI computer chips from the USA under President Joe Biden.
Skepticism towards EU treaties
Calmy-Rey is also critical of the new framework agreement with the EU. She is surprised that the Federal Council welcomes the conclusion of the negotiations, but that the text of the agreement has still not been published. "Why did the Federal Council push for the negotiations to be accelerated only to wait three years for the verdict of the people?" Calmy-Rey suspected that the Federal Council itself does not seem to be one hundred percent behind this.
Although she did not want to commit herself before the text was known, the institutional price of the agreements seemed too high to her, for example if the developments in European law had to be adopted: "If we are told: you can vote, but we will punish you if you say no, what is the point of holding a referendum?"
At the same time, Calmy-Rey emphasized the importance of the agreements, as they will have an impact on Switzerland's governance. However, she expects the Federal Council to show more leadership if it really wants the agreement.
