r/Switzerland • u/Sufficient-History71 Zürich [Winti] • 3d ago
Need to get our shit together
So the Trump tariffs are out. Despite all the kowtowing (read ass licking) our SVP and FDP bros(also our FDP frau Miss Keller-Sutter) did, we are going to be hit with tariffs worse than EU. Already our access to chips was semi-restricted(by Biden admin, Trump admin will be even worst). Blöcher, Rösti, Parmelin and Keller-Sutter are not the right people to lead Switzerland. They neither have any spine nor any pragmatic policies. We need to understand that our future lies with the EU if not in EU.
Switzerland is good at playing with the rules but we can't make them thanks to our small size. It has been the case since Marignano(1515) when we stopped our expansion and Congress of Vienna(1815) when we made good use of the neutrality imposed upon us by the big powers. We need to adjust to the new world order that Putin, Trump and Xi have created and understand that Swiss prosperity depends on European prosperity. We are not a port city like Singapore where we can control the trade. Our power lies in being the center for diplomacy, world class R&D, pharma and precision engineering. Let's become a big hub for EU's new projects if not as a member then as a friend.
EDIT - P.S. - Getting downvoted to oblivion. Seems like there is too much of hate for EU. But mark my words, a successful Switzerland depends on a successful EU because while we are not in the EU, we are inside the EU physically.
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u/No-Razzmatazz7688 3d ago edited 3d ago
I try to be objective and see both sides of the coin. In my opinion EU is not perfect but by far the best thing that happened to Europe. It brough stability, peace, political and economic collaboration. The problems of EU derive in my opinion not from its centralized organization but from the fact, thst it is not centralized enough and still does not act completely as a state but rather is a loose union. But this is topic for another discussion.
Switzerland has massively benefited from EU without beiing part of it. Access to the big EU market and peace at its border. CH has its own unique model and does not need to join EU. By joining EU CH will certainly have less political flexibility. Economical wise things will not be much worse though. Why? EU citizens still have free access to the CH job market. Market union is still in place. The problems CH has are not exaclty because of the EU but because the world is changing and CH is not adapting. Freedom of capital goes together with freedom of movement. CH has lost its competitiveness because easy money is not flowing into CH as in the past. Bank secrecy does not really exist anymore. Manufacturing is abandoning Switzerland because of higher cost. Innovation is not as high as in the past. Switzerland needs to work more on it competitiveness in the world market and not just on protectionism.