On 31 March 2026, the Foundation and CEDIDAC welcomed the State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Alexandre Fasel, for a conference preceded by a screening of archive movie. Watch the film of the event.
To begin with, a video presentation produced in collaboration with the RTS Data & Archives department traced the major milestones in relations between Switzerland and Europe, from the post-war period to the conclusion of the Bilateral Agreements II. This retrospective provided the perfect backdrop to Alexandre Fasel’s lecture entitled “Switzerland in Europe and the World”.
He then outlined the Federal Council’s vision for the future of Swiss-European relations. Drawing on personal archives dating back to 1991, he reiterated the constant of Swiss strategy: to participate in the European market, our true domestic market, in order to guarantee our prosperity. The rejection of the European Economic Area (EEA) in December 1992, described as a “black Sunday” for the economy, followed by the development of the Bilateral Agreements I and II, have shaped a unique path that Switzerland is now seeking to consolidate in the face of new geopolitical pressures, whilst preserving its sovereignty. Following the consultation process, the Bilateral Agreements III package is now before the Federal Assembly, before being put to a vote by the Swiss people.
The conference was held in the Aula-IDHEAP, where a large audience was present, and concluded with a discussion between Alexandre Fasel and the audience, moderated by Roger de Weck, before an aperitif brought the proceedings to a close.
Watch the film and the conference :
Film credits: Vincent Seriot, Head of Content RTS Archives; Salomé Breguet, Documentalist RTS Archives; Alexandre Billardo, Editor RTS Archives; Adelina Osdautaj, Project officer, FJME.
With the support of the University of Lausanne, La Loterie Romande and the Data & Archives department of RTS
