Federal Councillor Viola Amherd to sign a declaration of intent on security policy during London visit

Press releases, 20.04.2023

Federal Councillor Viola Amherd will meet with her UK counterpart, Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace, in London on 20 April. Talks are to focus on security in Europe and various ways that Switzerland and the UK can increase cooperation in this area. Ms Amherd, head of the DDPS, will also use the occasion to sign a declaration of intent to formalise the countries’ cooperation on security.

The war in Ukraine will have long-term consequences for security in Europe and beyond. The Federal Council is therefore seeking to increase international cooperation in Swiss security and defence policy more systematically, while maintaining the principle of neutrality. This has been set down in the supplementary report to the 2021 report on security policy, which the Federal Council approved in 2022.

The meeting between Federal Councillor Viola Amherd and Secretary of State Ben Wallace will focus on the security situation in Europe, the consequences of the war and the strengthening of collaboration between Switzerland and the UK. They will also discuss military peacebuilding and the UN Security Council. In May of this year, Switzerland will hold the presidency of the Security Council for the first time.

Strengthening security policy cooperation

Ms Amherd and Mr Wallace will sign a declaration of intent to strengthen cooperation between Switzerland and the United Kingdom in areas such as military training and the technology sector. The declaration of intent is a non-binding instrument intended to provide an institutional framework for the partnership and to formalise dialogue between Switzerland and the UK on new trends, threats and solutions.


Declaration of Intent(pdf, 135kb)


Address for enquiries:

Renato Kalbermatten
DDPS Head of Communication
+41 79 713 20 94


Publisher:

Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports DDPS