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Address by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), at the Switzerland-EU podium organised by the Tagesanzeiger in Zurich – Check against delivery

A new preliminary report (Cable car) is available on the website of the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board STSB.

Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, the head of the FDFA, will be in Berlin from 13 to 14 November 2025. He will meet with the German foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, and the minister for economic cooperation and development, Reem Alabali Radovan. The talks will focus on bilateral relations, European policy, geopolitical challenges, and reconstruction efforts in Ukraine and Gaza.

The first national prevention campaign against domestic, sexual and gender-based violence was launched on 11 November by Federal Councillor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider. The campaign is set to run over the course of several years and will address different target groups. It was prepared by the Federal Office for Gender Equality in collaboration with a broad alliance of partners from the Confederation, cantons, communes and civil society organisations.

In 2024, home care services provided 25.6 million hours of care (+10.2% on 2023) to some 424 000 beneficiaries. This increase, the largest since 2011, is mainly due to trends among private care providers. Compared with the previous year, they provided more hours of care (+23.4%) to a larger customer base (+20.5%) and employed 23.5% more people. In 2024, nursing home occupancy rates were also high, exceeding 97% in the French-speaking cantons. These are some of the latest results published by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).

The Federal Statistical Office (FSO) conducted an additional survey on attempted and completed homicides as part of the Police Crime Statistics (PCS) from 2019 to 2023. The aim was to collect information on victims and suspects that went beyond the PCS. A total of 1012 questionnaires were completed by the cantonal police authorities, covering  homicides in partnerships, in the family and outside the home. The results were published today by the FSO in a report.

The Swiss Confederation is offering two bonds on a public tender system on 12.11.2025: 1.25%, maturity 27.06.2037 (reopening) and 0.875%, maturity 22.05.2047 (reopening).

armasuisse and the manufacturer Elbit Systems Ltd have signed an addendum to the contract for the reconnaissance drone system 15 (ADS 15). Amongst other things, this also includes the services for the three functionalities not to be implemented.

Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin and EU Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva signed the Switzerland-EU programmes agreement in Bern on 10 November 2025. This part of the Switzerland-EU package can be provisionally applied with retroactive effect from the beginning of 2025. Switzerland is thus associated to Horizon Europe, the Euratom programme and the Digital Europe programme. The agreement also paves the way for association to ITER, Erasmus+ and EU4Health.

President Karin Keller-Sutter will travel to Warsaw on Thursday, 13 November, for talks with Polish President Karol Nawrocki and Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Discussions are expected to cover bilateral relations between Switzerland and Poland, European policy, global trade issues and European security in connection with Russia's war against Ukraine.

The Federal Office for Defence Procurement armasuisse has decided to whom to award the contracts for multispectral camouflage systems (MSTS). This decision factored in the performance capability of the systems, their deployment integration as well as logistical and economic criteria. The systems will be procured from all of the three European suppliers on the shortlist – SSZ Camouflage AG from Switzerland, Saro GmbH from Germany and Saab Barracuda AB from Sweden.

Cyberattacks that paralyse public services or result in the disclosure of sensitive data can undermine the public's trust in government institutions. Past incidents and the 2025 Myni Gmeind survey on cybersecurity demonstrate that many communes could enhance their preparedness for cyberincidents. To help communes and organisations in Switzerland strengthen their cyber resilience, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has launched a project together with its partner network. As part of this project, the NCSC has developed an emergency planning model, a set of practical tools, and an educational video, all of which are available on its website. The NCSC is also offering Brown Bag Lunches to show communes and organisations how best to prepare for cyberincidents.