After Switzerland ended talks with the EU on an institutional framework agreement aimed at replacing the country’s current patchwork of agreements with the bloc in May 2021, some in government have been focused on how to keep the EU on side. One obvious way to curry favour is to make the second 1 billion EU […]
The West’s abandonment of Afghanistan: a story of arrogance, ineptitude, and little understanding
By Edward Girardet The collapse of Afghanistan has been a disaster in the making for two decades and even longer. America’s shared responsibility for this country’s ongoing war stretches back to the summer of 1979 when the Central Intelligence Agency first began militarily supporting the anti-communist guerrillas, some of whom later became the Taliban. Even […]
Swiss government considering new 60 km/h motorway limits
Swiss roads are clogged and the government is looking for new ways to make traffic run more smoothly. One idea is to cut the speed on certain stretches during periods of peak traffic, potentially to as low as 60 km/h. Currently, speeds are temporarily reduced from 120 km/h to 100 km/h and 80 km/h when […]
Most popular Swiss names in 2020
In 2020, the most popular baby names in Switzerland were Mia and Noah. Mia is a long time favourite, scoring the top spot in 2019 and 2020. Noah has had a good run in the top spot for boys. It came top in 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. In 2019, the top […]
Nearly three quarters of Swiss against buying an electric car
A survey in Switzerland found that 73% of the population does not plan to buy an electric car. Governments around the world are pushing for the electrification of road transport and many car manufacturers have made public commitments to stop making fossil fuel powered cars in the near future. However, these plans rest on the […]
Afghanistan — “We Tried to Tell You”
Afghanistan’s war has lasted over four decades and not 20 as is often claimed, notably since the US-led invasion of October 2001. Mort Rosenblum, who has covered Afghanistan since the early days of the Soviet occupation of the 1980s, explores the current US disaster and the crucial role of good reporting in getting people to […]
Risk of parts of Swiss real estate market overheating, says UBS
The latest UBS Swiss Real Estate Bubble Index published this week shows several regions at risk of overheating property prices. The regions highlighted as exposed include Basel, Lausanne, Vevey, parts of the Vaud Alps, Lugano, Nidwalden, Luzern, Zug and the Zurich region, all parts of Switzerland where there is plenty of high paid work. Lausanne, […]
Project to save lake Zug from pollution abandoned
Lake Zug and a number of other Swiss lakes are polluted with animal manure. The problem stems partly from Switzerland’s oversized livestock sector fed on imported feed. Scientists can gauge of the scale of the problem by measuring the phosphorus content of lake water. In Lake Zug there is currently 80 milligrams of phosphorus per […]
Switzerland stops returning people to Afghanistan
On 11 August 2021, Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Migration (SEM), announced that it was stopping the return of failed asylum seekers to Afghanistan, as the security situation in the country deteriorates. SEM said it was stopping the return of failed asylum seekers until further notice. Only preparations for the expulsion of criminals would continue. Sweden, […]
Preacher accused of racial discrimination by Swiss prosecutor
In a long running case dating back to 2017, a Swiss prosecutor has accused a Libyan preacher of racial discrimination and started legal proceedings against the man, reported SRF. It is alleged that the 68 year old Libyan gave a hate speech targeting Jews, Christians, Hindus, Russians and Shiites in a mosque in the town […]
