Swiss voters have overwhelmingly rejected a proposal seeking to impose a stricter interpretation of the country’s longstanding policy of neutrality.
More than 70 per cent of voters voted against the initiative, according to official results.
The proposal would have required Switzerland to obtain United Nations approval before imposing sanctions and restricted the country from developing closer relations with the NATO military alliance.
The referendum comes amid renewed debate over Switzerland’s traditional non-alignment following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The initiative was backed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), while the federal government and other major political parties opposed it. Russia had also openly supported the proposal.
Lukas Golder, co-director of research institute Gfs.bern, said the result did not indicate that Swiss voters had rejected neutrality, but rather reflected support for the country’s sanctions against Russia.
“People have a clear idea of what Switzerland’s neutrality is supposed to achieve,” he told Swiss public broadcaster SRF.
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis had said during a televised debate that “neutrality has always been applied with a degree of flexibility”.
He said Switzerland had no plans to lift its ban on selling arms to countries involved in conflicts, including Ukraine, but stressed that “neutrality does not mean indifference”.
Cassis added that Switzerland would “not look away when we see violations of the very international rules that allow us to live in peace”.
Switzerland was granted “eternal neutrality” internationally at the Congress of Vienna in 1815, following a period of wars and political upheaval across Europe.
Its neutral status was later defined under the 1907 Hague Convention, which prohibits Switzerland from supplying weapons to countries at war.
The country has maintained its neutrality through major conflicts, including World War Two.
However, its wartime policies, including banking gold looted by Nazi Germany and turning away thousands of Jewish refugees, later drew criticism.
Switzerland apologised for those policies in the 1990s.
Under Switzerland’s system of direct democracy, major national issues can be put directly to voters through referendums.
