Swiss President Ueli Maurer says recent comments he made about Saudi Arabia in relation to Jamal Khashoggi have been taken out of context. Maurer sparked protest when he appeared to say that Swiss-Saudi relations had normalised, despite the Middle East country still being suspected of murdering the journalist.
But Maurer, who also heads the Swiss finance ministry, told Swiss public radio SRF that his remarks were confined to talks with his Saudi counterpart at the World Economic Forum (WEF), rather than the general political situation.
The meeting between the two ministers took place on Thursday at the WEF summit in Davos. Afterwards Maurer was quoted as saying: “We have long since dealt with the Khashoggi case. We have agreed to resume the financial dialogue and to normalise relations.”
Speaking to SRFExternal link on Saturday, Maurer insisted that he had not been speaking about the Swiss position on Khashoggi in general. His “dealt with” comment had instead referred specifically to his meeting with the Saudi finance minister, he said.
The episode has provoked outrage from other Swiss politicians who accuse Maurer of breaking ranks with the common position of the Swiss government.
In October, the Swiss government stressed the “need for a detailed, rigorous, and transparent inquiry”, following the killing of the Saudi critic, allegedly by agents of the Saudi rulers. A planned trip to Saudi Arabia by Maurer was also postponed last year.
As a Swiss Abroad, how do you feel about the emergence of more conservative family policies in some US states?
In recent years several US states have adopted more conservative policies on family issues, abortion and education. As a Swiss citizen living there, how do you view this development?
This content was published on
Two fish species recently discovered in Switzerland have been called fluvicola and ommata, following an appeal to the public for names.
Convicted ex-shipowner achieves partial success in Swiss court
This content was published on
The Federal Supreme Court orders lower court to reassess part of its verdict against former Swiss shipowner Hans-Jürg Grunder.
This content was published on
A Swiss moratorium on the genetic engineering of plants, which expires at the end of 2025, could be extended for five years.
SWISS airline achieves second-best profit in history
This content was published on
Revenues soared for Swiss International Air Lines in 2024, contributing to the second-largest profit in the company's history.
Switzerland to collect data from non-Schengen visitors
This content was published on
The data of travellers from non-Schengen countries will be automatically recorded at the borders of member countries, also Switzerland.
Concern over sharp rise in Swiss arms sales to Gulf
This content was published on
Swiss sales of war equipment to Saudi Arabia, Bahrein and the United Arab Emirates have reportedly risen sharply this year.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.