Saggi di Dodis 2 (2020/4)

In the interwar period, Switzerland greatly expanded its network of diplomatic representations. After the end of the First World War in 1919, Switzerland maintained diplomatic representations in 19 countries. 20 years later, shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War, there were already 36, a far greater expansion than had taken place between 1848 and 1918. This article analyses these developments on the basis of quantitative analyses and three case studies. It shows that this expansion was characterised by domestic political controversies and a power struggle between Parliament and the Federal Council. Above all, however, it becomes clear that the remarkable expansion was primarily driven by economic considerations and that the expansion of Switzerland’s diplomatic representation network in the interwar period was an important building block for the further development of Swiss diplomacy after 1945.

Patrick Maître, M.A., Historian, and former research assistant at the research centre for Diplomatic Documents of Switzerland (Dodis).