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When the Biden administration was organizing high-level summits with Russia in June and China in October, it turned to the same country: Switzerland.

Why it matters: The neutral state at the heart of Europe has long played a larger role in U.S. diplomacy than many Americans realize.

Not only did Switzerland play host to President Biden and Vladimir Putin, and later national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi, the country also plays a central role in diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran.

Since the U.S. severed relations with Tehran following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, U.S. diplomatic and consular affairs in Iran have flowed through the Swiss Embassy. The Swiss often serve as an intermediary between the countries.

It’s not just a one-way street. The Swiss hope to negotiate a free trade agreement with Washington, and could also use U.S. support next year as they seek a seat on the UN Security Council for the first time.

Zoom in: Four women on both sides of the Atlantic are currently at the heart of the relationship: Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman; Swiss State Secretary Livia Leu; U.S. Chargé d’Affaires in Bern Eva Weigold Schultz; and Beatrice Schaer, head of protocol at the Swiss Foreign Ministry.

Sherman and Leu developed a friendship in the lead-up to the Iran deal, when Sherman was the lead U.S. negotiator in Geneva and Leu was ambassador to Iran. Leu’s first working trip outside of Europe in her current role was to Washington to meet Sherman, and Sherman visited Leu in Switzerland earlier this month.

Weigold Schultz, meanwhile, is "really in the driver's seat although just being the ambassador ad interim," a Swiss official close to the government tells Axios.

And Schaer won plaudits for organizing the Biden-Putin summit in just eight days.

Worth noting: The economic relationship is also bigger than you might expect. Switzerland is the seventh-largest foreign direct investor in the U.S. economy, ahead of much larger countries such as France and Spain. Total trade between the two countries amounts to $130 billion per year.

The Swiss role in U.S. diplomacy flies under the radar

Switzerland has coordinated U.S. talks with Russia, China and Iran

Illustration of a swiss army knife with various speech bubbles being pulled out. 

Switzerland

When the Biden administration was organizing high-level summits with Russia in June and China in October, it turned to the same country: Switzerland.Why it matters: The neutral state at the heart of Europe has long played a larger role in U.S. diplomacy than many Americans realize.

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

Switzerland will soon become the 16th country to possess advanced F-35 jets — unless activists manage to thwart the $5.5 billion deal by forcing a referendum.

Why it matters: An activist group called "Schweiz ohne Armee" (GSoA) is teaming up with left-leaning political parties to campaign against the purchase, arguing that the jets are too expensive and threaten the concept of Swiss neutrality. One month into their campaign they’ve collected more than 25,000 signatures — one-quarter of the 100,000 needed for a referendum, with 17 months still to go.

Flashback: A previous referendum on the government’s plan to buy new stealth aircraft passed last September by a margin of 50.1% to 49.9%, making clear how divisive the issue is for Swiss voters.

At that point, four aircraft were in consideration. Then in June, Defense Minister Viola Amherd announced that the government had selected the F-35.

The other side: Jonas Kampus, a member of GSoA’s secretariat, tells Axios that Switzerland has no need for “luxury fighter jets” — particularly those that mean U.S. intelligence would “always be in the cockpit,” as GSoA claims on its website.

He says his group is on track to hit the signature threshold. Amherd also expects another referendum but argues that it’s unnecessary: “The people have already said yes once, and now they are voting on the same thing again.”

The big picture: Switzerland is known for its neutrality, but it maintains a military — including through compulsory military service — for its national defense and internal security. Defense spending hit a 25-year high in 2020 at 0.8% of GDP.

The movement to stop Switzerland's F-35 deal

Switzerland will soon become the 16th country to possess advanced F-35 jets.

An F-35 makes a stop in Switzerland during the procurement process. Photo: Gunter Fischer/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty

Switzerland will soon become the 16th country to possess advanced F-35 jets — unless activists manage to thwart the $5.5 billion deal by forcing a referendum.Why it matters: An activist group called &quot;Schweiz ohne Armee&quot; (GSoA) is teaming up with left-leaning political parties to campaign against the purchase, arguing that the jets are too expensive and threaten the concept of Swiss neutrality. One month into their campaign they’ve collected more than 25,000 signatures — one-quarter of the 100,000 needed for a referendum, with 17 months still to go.

In an emotional address to the Swiss people on Saturday — which was livestreamed at a solidarity rally outside the Federal Palace in the capital, Bern — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for tougher sanctions on oligarchs and asked, "Why can't we live like the Swiss?"

Why it matters: Switzerland is famously neutral, but not when it comes to the war in Ukraine.

Driving the news: Swiss President Ignazio Cassis spoke at the rally on Saturday, praising the Ukrainian people's spirit of resistance but drawing a rebuke from the right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP), which provides two of the Swiss government's seven ministers.

"A demonstrating federal president is the last thing Switzerland needs," the SVP said. One of the party's leading figures has called for a referendum to ban sanctions to preserve Switzerland's neutrality.

Yes, but: The Swiss population broadly supports the sanctions against Russia, and all three major newspapers published editorials over the weekend calling for additional steps, like ending Switzerland's reliance on Russian gas.

Unlike during the 2015 migrant crisis, solidarity with Ukrainian refugees is also high.

During his speech, Zelensky specifically called on Swiss multinational Nestlé, the world's largest food company, to end its business in Russia.

"We have stopped all imports and exports from Russia, except for vital products," a spokesperson told Blick.

He also called on Swiss banks to freeze oligarchs' funds and for Switzerland to expel Russian President Vladimir Putin’s supporters.

Worth noting: The Swiss Federal Department of Police and Justice has responded to media reports that Putin's "secret wife" and their children might be hiding out in a luxury chalet in the Alps, saying it has "no indication of the presence of this person in Switzerland."

Switzerland is not so neutral on Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Switzerland is imposing sanctions and showing solidarity.

 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s remarks are livestreamed in Bern. Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty

In an emotional address to the Swiss people on Saturday — which was livestreamed at a solidarity rally outside the Federal Palace in the capital, Bern — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for tougher sanctions on oligarchs and asked, &quot;Why can&#x27;t we live like the Swiss?&quot;Why it matters: Switzerland is famously neutral, but not when it comes to the war in Ukraine.

Data: Preliminary results from German Federal Returning Officer; Chart: Sara Wise/Axios

Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD) pulled off a come-from-behind victory in Sunday’s elections, 10 seats ahead of the Christian Democrats (CDU), which failed to finish top for the first time in 16 years.

State of play: SPD leader Olaf Scholz has said he’ll seek to form a government, but so too has Armin Laschet, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s successor as CDU leader. 

With a renewal of the unpopular “grand coalition” between the center-left SPD and center-right CDU appearing unlikely, either Scholz or Laschet will need to bring two smaller parties on board to become chancellor.

That means the election’s true winners may be the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP), which will likely serve as the junior partners in either a “traffic light” (SPD-Greens-FDP) or “Jamaica” (CDU-Greens-FDP) coalition, so named because of the parties’ colors.

As the leader of the largest party, Scholz is best-positioned to become chancellor. He has said he wants to move quickly to reach a deal with the Greens and the FDP, but coalition negotiations typically drag on for weeks. After the last election in Sep. 2017, it took 5.5 months to form a government.

Coming off the CDU’s worst electoral performance ever, Laschet will have a hard time staking a claim to the chancellery. He may not survive in his position long enough to handle the negotiations himself, as some in his party are reportedly pushing him to resign.

The big picture: The power-political constellation in Germany has shifted after the election, and the next government will likely include three parties with very different platforms for the first time.

While the SPD and the Greens are largely pulling in the same direction on many issues — such as the wealth tax or a relaxation of the debt brake — it will be more difficult to reach an agreement with the FDP, which considers tax increases a red line. 

The liberals would undoubtedly favor a CDU-led coalition, but FDP leader Christian Lindner has announced “preliminary explorations with the Greens” to move toward a common position.

Referring to the lack of common ground between the parties on Monday, Greens chancellor candidate Annalena Baerbock joked, “I assume we all love to eat ice cream.”

What to watch: The main “trophy” over which the parties will likely tussle in negotiations is the Ministry of Finance, due to its influence on other ministries and role in vital areas like taxation, climate action and the post-Covid economy. Scholz currently serves as finance minister.

The FDP (11.5%) is riding high after a strong result, and Lindner is likely to push for the job.

The Greens (14.8%) won more seats than ever before but still fell short of expectations after peaking at around 28% in the polls. Reports in German media suggest Baerbock, is likely to be superseded by party co-leader Robert Habeck as vice chancellor in the next government.

Worth noting: Only around 15% of German voters supported the far-left and extreme-right — 7% less than in 2017. All parties ruled out negotiations with the far-right AfD (10.3%). The Left (4.9%) also lost ground.

However, the AfD finished first in two East German states: Saxony (24.6%) and Thuringia (24%).

German elections: After close result, jockeying to replace Merkel begins

The center-left SPD is in the driver's seat as Merkel exits the stage.

German elections

German election: CDU leader set to step down as "traffic light" turns green

The parties are talking, but this could still take a while.

The chair of Germany’s ruling Christian Democrats (CDU) prepared to step aside today as three rival parties began coalition negotiations that will likely end with the CDU out of power for the first time since Angela Merkel was elected in 2005.The big picture: The Greens and the liberals (FDP) — now kingmakers because either major party would need them to govern — began exploratory talks with the election-winning Social Democrats (SPD) aimed at forming a “traffic light coalition,&quot; so named because of the parties&#x27; colors.

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Fabienne Kinzelmann

Stories

Switzerland is not so neutral on Russia's invasion of Ukraine

The Swiss role in U.S. diplomacy flies under the radar

German election: CDU leader set to step down as "traffic light" turns green

The movement to stop Switzerland's F-35 deal

German elections: After close result, jockeying to replace Merkel begins