Swiss citizens rejected the idea of inadmissibility of sanctions against Russia in a referendum
This is indicated by exit poll data and statistical models built on the basis of initial vote counting results, reports the BBC.
A clear majority of Swiss voters preliminarily spoke out in the referendum against the proposal to enshrine in the Constitution an understanding of the country's neutrality that would exclude sanctions against Russia and cooperation with NATO.
According to the latest forecasts on the referendum results, published by the state broadcaster SRF, more than two-thirds voted against the proposal to enshrine a narrow definition in the Swiss Constitution. The gfs.bern institute's model, 30 minutes after the end of voting, showed that 71% of voters opposed the proposal.
The right-populist Swiss People's Party proposed to stipulate that Switzerland could only join international sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council. In its opinion, Switzerland's traditional neutrality was undermined after Bern imposed sanctions against Russia with the start of the war in Ukraine.
The amendments proposed by the Swiss People's Party also stipulated the refusal of close cooperation with any military alliances — unless the country faces an immediate threat of attack.
Opponents of the Swiss People's Party presented its initiative as pro-Russian.
Switzerland largely joined the European Union's sanctions against Russia, which were introduced after February 2022. The country is not a member of NATO but maintains quite close relations with the alliance and participates in some of its programs.
Switzerland declared itself a neutral country in 1815 and enshrined this status in its Constitution in 1848. However, the text of the Constitution allows for a wide range of interpretations.
In 2022, Switzerland deemed the Russian invasion of Ukraine a violation of international law and joined the EU's sanctions against Moscow.
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