Bern - Switzerland does not want to introduce sanctions against Russia, as this would cast doubts on its role as a mediator, Economic Affairs Federal Department chief Johann Schneider-Ammann said in an interview with the newspaper Schweiz am Sonntag.
He said the presence of a country in the world arena that does not support any of the conflicting parties was important.
Switzerland is not introducing one-on-one sanctions, but wants to
make sure it will not be used as a platform for bypassing sanctions, he
said.
The Swiss economics minister also said that Switzerland wants to help
end the uncertainty of the war and to assist a step-by-step settlement
of the crisis. But it will not play this role effectively if it just
duplicates the European sanctions, he said.
Schneider-Ammann also expressed concern about the potential impact of
the European Union’s and United States’ fresh sanctions on Western
companies, about the domino effect that could affect the Swiss economy,
and also about a possible rise in tariffs on Russian energy that could
impact Switzerland, however indirectly.
Swiss Ambassador to Russia Pierre Helg earlier told Interfax that
Bern was not planning to follow in the European Union’s footsteps and
introduce sanction against Russia.
EU sanctions currently apply to 95 Russian citizens and 23 entities.
Their European bank accounts have been frozen and their entry into the
EU has been banned.
Similar sanctions against Russia have been introduced by the U.S., Japan, Canada and Australia.
The EU imposed sectoral restrictions on three Russian economic sectors – finance, oil and defense – on Aug. 1.
