Zelenskyy Talks to Swiss President-Elect for the First Time about Aid and "Peace Formula"

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held his first telephone conversation with Alain Berset, the newly elected head of the Federal Council of Switzerland, on Thursday.

"I had my first call with the new President of Switzerland Alain Berset. I thanked for the support package worth CHF 114 million. We discussed joint projects, in which both countries are interested, and also devoted time to practical issues of implementing the peace formula," Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter.

Провів першу розмову з новим Президентом Швейцарії @alain_berset. Подякував за пакет підтримки на CHF 114 млн. Обговорили спільні проекти, у яких зацікавлені обидві країни, також приділили час практичним питанням щодо реалізації #ФормулаМиру.

— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 2, 2023

In late February, the Swiss government asked the country's parliament to approve sending 140 million francs of additional humanitarian aid to Ukraine and Moldova. Most of the proposed funds, 114 million francs, are intended for Ukraine.

The planned aid includes shelters for schools, repairs to hospitals, and energy infrastructure, and small loans for small agricultural businesses.

Neutral Switzerland has adopted European Union sanctions against Russia, including restrictions against 1,300 individuals and an asset freeze of 7.5 billion francs. At the same time, Bern blocked further exports of Swiss-made weapons by Germany, Denmark, and Spain to Kyiv, citing its neutrality laws.

According to a poll by Tamedia and 20 Minuten published the day before, every second Swiss is ready to allow third countries to send Swiss weapons and ammunition to Ukraine.