Switzerland’s capacity for facilitation and mediation, such as Turkish-Armenian rapprochement, generally enjoy strong public support, reads one of the WikiLeaks-published letters sent by U.S. Ambassador Donald Beyer to the Secretary of State.
The letter was sent prior to the signing ceremony of the Armenian-Turkish protocols in Zurich in October 2009. “I and the rest of the Embassy Bern team are looking forward to your visit with great anticipation in what promises to be a landmark event in Armenian-Turkish relations with lasting benefits for Euro-Atlantic security,” the letter reads. The Ambassador points out series of foreign policy successes of Foreign Minister Calmy-Rey, stressing the mediation in normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey.
“Foreign Minister Calmy-Rey is riding high on a series of foreign policy successes, from the Swiss government’s agreement with DOJ in the UBS matter, to Switzerland’s hosting of the October 1 P5 1 talks with Iran in Geneva, to the upcoming October 10 signing ceremony in Zurich to chart a path for normalization of relations between Turkey and Armenia.
While Calmy-Rey has reasons to celebrate, her foreign policy activism is not universally appreciated across the domestic political spectrum in Switzerland. Swiss views are colored by Switzerland’s centuries-old tradition of neutrality. Issues that draw on the Swiss capacity for facilitation and mediation, such as Turkish-Armenian rapprochement, generally enjoy strong public support. On the other hand, foreign policy activism with a more partisan or “hard” security flavor, such as Calmy-Rey’s vociferous support for Kosovo independence, or her recent all out — but ultimately unsuccessful — effort to obtain a parliamentary mandate for Swiss military participation in the EU anti-piracy operation Atalanta, do not enjoy the same broad public support.,” it says.
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