On 3 January 2026, Dodis celebrated the publication of the Diplomatic Documents of Switzerland DDS 1995 with numerous Amiche e Amici di Dodis. Prof. em. Dr. Madeleine Herren-Oesch, President of the Dodis Commission, welcomed them at the University of Bern. Prof. Dr. Sacha Zala, Director of Dodis, then presented the new volume of Diplomatic Documents of Switzerland and gave an impressive overview of the foreign policy issues that came to the fore from 1995 onwards and would continue to shape Swiss foreign policy from then on.
Christa Gall (SRF Federal Parliament correspondent) echoed the Dodis director’s explanations in her interview with the evening’s guest of honour, former Federal Chancellor Walter Thurnherr. As a young diplomat in Moscow in 1995, Thurnherr was at the heart of events and provided a lively insight into the practical work of Swiss crisis diplomacy.
Watch the entire vernissage on 3 January 2026:
The commemorations marking the end of the Second World War force the Federal Council to take a stance on Switzerland’s treatment of Jewish refugees during the Nazi era. Issues related to asylum and migration also feature prominently in day-to-day political activity. In preparation for Switzerland’s OSCE chairmanship, the diplomatic service is engaged in conflict prevention in crisis areas of the post-Soviet states and in the former Yugoslavia. The free movement of persons and the transport dossier remain key sticking points in bilateral negotiations with the EU. The edited documents also address human rights and environmental policy, development cooperation and economic relations with Asia, Latin America and North Africa.
- Direct access to the volume DDS 1995
- To the press release
Programme for the vernissage
Begrüssung durch
Prof. em. Dr. Madeleine Herren, Präsidentin der Dodis-Kommission
Prof. Dr. Sacha Zala, Direttore Dodis
Presentazione del nuovo volume
Walter Thurnherr, alt Bundeskanzler
im Gespräch mit
Christa Gall, Bundeshaus-Korrespondentin SRF
Apéro
