News about Switzerland: events, facts and developments on tafs uz.
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Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis arrived in Pyongyang to reopen a diplomatic office, calling it a step toward strengthening direct dialogue with the DPRK. The status of the mission remains undetermined.
Otabek YusupovThawing permafrost and retreating glaciers are destabilizing the Swiss Alps: according to Swiss Info, 65 of the 152 huts of the Swiss Alpine Club are located in potentially dangerous zones. The club is forced to relocate buildings and spend millions on protective measures; the Mutthorn hut was closed in 2021, and its dismantling in the summer of 2025 cost more than $480,000.
Otabek YusupovOn 29 November, Switzerland will hold a nationwide vote on the popular initiative 'For the Restriction of Fireworks', which gathered more than 137,000 signatures. It proposes banning the sale of loud pyrotechnics for private use, while keeping quiet alternatives and allowing exceptions for the cantons. According to an SBC poll from 23 October, 69% of voters support the ban, but industry associations and several parties are opposed. On 29 November, Switzerland will hold a nationwide vote on the popular initiative 'For a Restriction on Fireworks', which gathered more than 137,000 signatures. It proposes banning the sale of loud pyrotechnics for private use, while keeping quiet alternatives and exceptions for the cantons. According to an SBC poll from 23 October, 69% of voters support the ban, but industry associations and several parties are opposed.
Aziz KarimovThe only confirmed Ebola patient in Nigeria — a Swiss citizen believed to have been infected in Uganda — has been evacuated to Switzerland. Uganda, declared Ebola-free in August, has imposed quarantine on those returning from the DR Congo and banned transit for anyone who has been there.
Madina UsmonovaSwitzerland's Federal Department of Foreign Affairs said that the first recorded case of Ebola in Nigeria is a Swiss woman, the wife of an employee of the country's embassy in Abuja. The couple recently traveled together in Uganda but did not visit the DR Congo, the epicenter of the outbreak. The husband is isolated without symptoms, 44 contacts have been identified, and the WHO does not recommend restricting travel or trade.
Sevara AzamovaAustria and Switzerland confirmed the release of their nationals — Eva Gretzmacher (76) and Claudia Abbt (69), kidnapped in 2025 in the Nigerien city of Agadez. The women were handed over to the authorities in Benghazi, Libya; in a video on local TV they thanked Marshal Khalifa Haftar and his son. The circumstances of the release and the kidnappers have not been officially named.
Javlon TursunovThe sixth consultative meeting of states and international organizations on strengthening peace in Sudan has begun in Geneva. Participants discussed coordination of diplomatic efforts, de-escalation, and conditions for a comprehensive ceasefire. Switzerland and the UN pointed to a humanitarian catastrophe: more than 15 million displaced persons, famine in Darfur and Kordofan, and a threat to regional stability.
Javlon TursunovSwiss President Guy Parmelin arrived in Hanoi on a two-day official visit. He was welcomed by Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Vu Dai Thang, and Vietnamese President To Lam held an official welcoming ceremony at the National Assembly building. The delegations held talks and exchanged cooperation documents, the details of which have not yet been disclosed.
Otabek Yusupov
