Swiss president under fire for making concessions to the United States; Thurgau parliament naturalises Syrian man after eight years of controversy; and other news in our Thursday roundup.
Swiss president under fire for making concessions to the United States
President Guy Parmelin flew to Washington this week to work out a better trade deal for Swiss exports.
However, not only had he not accomplished this goal, but he actually made unilateral promises to reduce barriers for the import of US pharmaceuticals and cars into Switzerland.
These unreciprocated concessions have met with criticism from a number of deputies, who said Parmelin made promises to the Trump administration without consulting with the members of the Parliament first.
“That’s a pretty authoritarian approach,” said MP Carlo Sommaruga, while another deputy, Damian Müller, pointed out that “Switzerland must not believe that it can automatically buy goodwill in Washington with one-sided concessions.”
Thurgau Parliament naturalises Syrian man after eight years of controversy
The man in question first applied for naturalisation in 2018.
However, his application was denied on the grounds that he owed his municipality, Romanshorn, 11,000 francs; the refusal was maintained despite several court rulings in his favour.
The reason the process took so long is that in Thurgau, the Parliament has the final say on naturalisations – unlike other cantons, where a naturalisation commission decides.
So the man found himself caught in a political tug-of-war between the courts and the cantonal Parliament for eight long years, before the latter finally gave in, narrowly voting to allow him to obtain his Swiss citizenship.
Traffic jams on Swiss motorways have increased considerably
The Federal Roads Office (ASTRA) recorded around 68,000 hours of traffic jams on national roads in 2025.
The A1, A2 and A3 motorways were particularly affected by the worsening road congestion.
On the A2 between Basel and Chiasso, for example, 15,740 hours of traffic jams were measured, which corresponds to an increase of around 31 percent over the previous year.
In Geneva, which is notorious for its traffic jams, the motorway between the airport and Perly was particularly affected, as were certain sections of the A9 towards Simplon.
SWISS aims for a 65-percent punctuality rate this summer
As it is entering its peak travel season, the national airline has set a new punctuality goal for its fleet – 65 percent of its flights should depart and arrive on time.
This may not seem like an impressive figure – especially as Swiss trains aim to exceed the 90-percent timeliness threshold – but SWISS factored in “external pressures such as weather, airspace congestion, and geopolitical restrictions.”
According to company’s CEO Oliver Buchhofer, “it is always a major effort, but we have prepared intensively and are confident that we can achieve our targets.”
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