Political leaders come face to face in Davos

A policeman keeps watch over the Davos forum Keystone

No fewer than four Swiss cabinet ministers are taking part in this year's meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos - an indication of how important the event is for Switzerland.

For Swiss politicians and business leaders the forum is primarily an opportunity for networking on a large scale.

More than 2,000 representatives of business, politics, non-governmental organisations and the media from 100 countries are expected to attend.

Representing the Swiss government will be the finance minister, Kaspar Villiger, the economics minister, Joseph Deiss, the interior minister, Pascal Couchepin, and the new foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey.

US talks

Calmy-Rey, who took up office on January 1, will be holding talks with the United States secretary of state, Colin Powell, on Saturday – her first high-level contact with Washington.

The possible war in Iraq is expected to dominate their talks. On Wednesday the Swiss government clarified its position on Iraq, saying no military action should be taken by the US unless authorised by a new Security Council resolution.

“There are several reasons why the WEF is important for Switzerland,” foreign ministry spokesman Livio Zanolari told swissinfo.

“For Swiss politicians the WEF is useful because Switzerland does not take part in many important multilateral meetings. The WEF offers our country the opportunity for many meetings in a short time.

“Through the WEF Switzerland provides a platform for different interest groups to debate the major topics and problems of this world,” Zanolari said.

Critical debate

He added that critical debate was not limited to the fringe events organised by opponents of globalisation, but could also be heard within WEF sessions.

Political talks were likely to focus on Iraq, Zanolari said, as the most topical issue of the day.

Relatively few representatives of Swiss industry were expected to attend the WEF, but big names such as the heads of Novartis and Nestlé are taking part.

A spokesman for Novartis CEO Daniel Vasella said the event was an important and necessary forum for discussion of economic issues.

“Even if the many burning issues cannot be resolved in such a short time, the discussions always generate important impetus,” Vasella’s spokesman said.

Nestlé chief Peter Brabeck also appreciated the WEF for the opportunities it provided for networking, his spokesman said.

“It allows meetings to take place which overfull diaries would otherwise render impossible,” the Nestlé spokesman said. “So the WEF is an ideal meeting place.”

swissinfo, Elvira Wiegers

In brief

The World Economic Forum in Davos is an important venue for networking.

Four members of the Swiss government will be visiting the forum where they hope to forge useful contacts.

The foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey, is scheduled to meet her US counterpart, Colin Powell, for the first time since taking office. Iraq is expected to be the main topic of discussion.