Trainers from the NBC EOD Centre of Competence will teach the basics of chemical emergency survival to 25 representatives from States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). The State Secretariat for Security Policy (SEPOS) is coordinating the course in cooperation with the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

At its meeting on 22 May, the Federal Council approved a temporary restriction on the use of airspace during the high-level conference on peace in Ukraine, which Switzerland will be hosting on 15 and 16 June at the Bürgenstock resort in the canton of Nidwalden. The Swiss Air Force will provide air policing and advanced air surveillance services. The Armed Forces will also set up a subsidiary support service to complement the security measures of the cantonal authorities.

On 4 and 5 December, Admiral Rob Bauer, the Chair of the NATO Military Committee, will be paying an official visit to the Swiss Armed Forces. Discussions with the Chief of the Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Thomas Süssli, will focus on intensifying cooperation with NATO. A courtesy visit with the head of the DDPS, Federal Councillor Viola Amherd, is also on the agenda.

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine continues to have a lasting impact on national and international security policy. Switzerland’s security continues to be shaped in particular by the growing rivalry between major powers. The Federal Intelligence Service’s (FIS) abilities to anticipate, identify and assess in time threats and developments that are of strategic importance to Switzerland are crucial for taking preventive measures. The latest FIS situation report presents the main developments in intelligence over the past year.

Until now, little has been known about the effects that earthquakes in Switzerland could have on people and buildings. At the request of the Federal Council, the Swiss Seismological Service (SED) at ETH Zurich together with the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), the Federal Office for Civil Protection (FOCP), EPFL and other partners from industry have developed the first publicly accessible and – and, to date, most reliable – earthquake risk model for Switzerland. The model provides a new tool enabling the public, authorities and businesses to prepare for earthquakes and to better cope with the next damaging quake.