https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Switzerland in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed The growing threat from Russia and the risk of renewed conflict in Europe have thrown a spotlight on the continent's varied military service models. https://www.thelocal.ch/20251127/threat-of-war-which-countries-in-europe-have-military-service Thu, 27 Nov 2025 13:37:47 +0100 threat-of-war-which-countries-in-europe-have-military-service Members of Swiss parliament from across the political spectrum have called for the billions of frozen Russian assets to be used to rebuild Ukraine. https://www.thelocal.ch/20220509/swiss-mps-call-for-russian-money-to-be-used-to-reconstruct-ukraine Mon, 09 May 2022 14:55:27 +0200 swiss-mps-call-for-russian-money-to-be-used-to-reconstruct-ukraine Reporters investigating Russian military intelligence have been targeted by highly sophisticated cyberattacks through their encrypted email accounts, with evidence suggesting Moscow was responsible, the email service provider ProtonMail and journalists said on Saturday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20190729/swiss-based-email-provider-protonmail-targeted-in-cyberattack Mon, 29 Jul 2019 09:30:45 +0200 swiss-based-email-provider-protonmail-targeted-in-cyberattack From Donald Trump's visit to the WEF meeting in Davos to Swiss rules on how to cook lobsters, here are the stories from Switzerland that captured global attention over the last 12 months. https://www.thelocal.ch/20181225/the-swiss-stories-that-made-international-headlines-in-2018 Tue, 25 Dec 2018 09:56:13 +0100 the-swiss-stories-that-made-international-headlines-in-2018 The World Economic Forum said on Monday that it had reached an agreement to allow sanctioned Russian tycoons to attend next month's Davos meeting, clearing Moscow to also send a full government delegation https://www.thelocal.ch/20181218/russian-delegation-heading-to-davos-after-sanctioned-oligarchs-allowed-in Tue, 18 Dec 2018 11:48:12 +0100 russian-delegation-heading-to-davos-after-sanctioned-oligarchs-allowed-in Moscow on Tuesday summoned the ambassadors of Switzerland and the Netherlands over what it called "unsubstantiated accusations" that Russian spies had attempted to hack Swiss targets. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180919/moscow-summons-swiss-ambassadors-over-spy-row Wed, 19 Sep 2018 10:59:11 +0200 moscow-summons-swiss-ambassadors-over-spy-row Two suspected Russian agents who were planning to spy on a chemical laboratory in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland were arrested in the Netherlands in spring of this year, according to reports published in Swiss and Dutch media. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180914/russian-agents-planned-to-spy-on-swiss-chemicals-lab-report Fri, 14 Sep 2018 11:54:59 +0200 russian-agents-planned-to-spy-on-swiss-chemicals-lab-report Russian anti-virus software firm Kaspersky Lab, which is suspected by US authorities of helping the Kremlin's espionage efforts, said Tuesday it was moving its core infrastructure and operations to Switzerland. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180515/scandal-hit-kaspersky-to-transfer-infrastructure-from-russia-to-switzerland Tue, 15 May 2018 12:33:59 +0200 scandal-hit-kaspersky-to-transfer-infrastructure-from-russia-to-switzerland Swiss engineering company Sulzer on Thursday said that Russia's Renova, hit by US sanctions, no longer holds a controlling stake in the firm following a transfer of shares aimed at reassuring investors and the authorities. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180412/switzerlands-sulzer-steps-away-from-russias-sanctions-hit-renova Thu, 12 Apr 2018 14:02:41 +0200 switzerlands-sulzer-steps-away-from-russias-sanctions-hit-renova Swiss engineering company Sulzer said on Wednesday that its bank accounts in the United States had been partially frozen after one of its top shareholders was targeted by US sanctions. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180412/us-banks-freeze-accounts-of-switzerlands-sulzer-after-russia-sanctions Thu, 12 Apr 2018 10:48:14 +0200 us-banks-freeze-accounts-of-switzerlands-sulzer-after-russia-sanctions Swiss engineering company Sulzer said it is buying back five million shares from Russia's Renova to guard against "disruptions" after Renova's chairman Viktor Vekselberg was targeted by US sanctions. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180409/business-switzerlands-sulzer-buys-back-shares-from-renova-to-limit-us-sanctions-damage Mon, 09 Apr 2018 14:34:45 +0200 business-switzerlands-sulzer-buys-back-shares-from-renova-to-limit-us-sanctions-damage A sub-sea gas pipeline linking Finland and Estonia moved closer to reality on Thursday as the two EU members signed a construction deal on the project intended to ease the region's dependence on Russian gas. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180329/swiss-based-allseas-group-to-build-subsea-section-of-finlandestonia-gas-pipeline Thu, 29 Mar 2018 23:27:17 +0200 swiss-based-allseas-group-to-build-subsea-section-of-finlandestonia-gas-pipeline Forty-seven Russians implicated in doping lost a last-minute court bid to take part in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics on Friday, just hours before the opening ceremony. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180209/russian-athletes-lose-appeal-over-olympics-ban Fri, 09 Feb 2018 09:39:20 +0100 russian-athletes-lose-appeal-over-olympics-ban The Court of Arbitration for Sport on Thursday lifted life bans on 28 of the 43 Russians accused of doping at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, meaning some could still compete at this month's Pyeongchang Games. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180201/sports-court-in-switzerland-lifts-life-bans-of-28-russians-accused-of-doping Thu, 01 Feb 2018 12:39:58 +0100 sports-court-in-switzerland-lifts-life-bans-of-28-russians-accused-of-doping Dozens of Russian athletes banned by the International Olympic Committee for life over doping began an appeal against their suspension on Monday at the world's top sports court. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180122/appeal-begins-in-geneva-for-russian-athletes-suspended-in-doping-scandal Mon, 22 Jan 2018 13:59:44 +0100 appeal-begins-in-geneva-for-russian-athletes-suspended-in-doping-scandal Whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov, the source of revelations about state-sponsored doping in Russia, is expected to testify next week at a Court of Arbitration for Sport hearing involving the appeals of 39 Russians banned for doping. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180118/doping-whistleblower-to-testify-in-geneva-as-athletes-appeal Thu, 18 Jan 2018 09:47:29 +0100 doping-whistleblower-to-testify-in-geneva-as-athletes-appeal Russia were banned from the 2018 Olympics on Tuesday over state-sponsored doping but the Lausanne-based International Olympic Committee (IOC) said Russian competitors would be able to compete "under strict conditions". https://www.thelocal.ch/20171205/russia-banned-from-2018-winter-olympics Tue, 05 Dec 2017 21:08:58 +0100 russia-banned-from-2018-winter-olympics Disgraced ex-IAAF president Lamine Diack's son Papa Massata Diack, former Russian athletics chief Valentin Balakhnichev and coach Alexei Melnikov lost their appeals on Monday against life bans imposed over corruption. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170822/athletics-trio-embroiled-in-russian-doping-scandal-loses-appeal Tue, 22 Aug 2017 10:22:12 +0200 athletics-trio-embroiled-in-russian-doping-scandal-loses-appeal Switzerland has unblocked hundreds of millions of dollars belonging to the former head of the Bank of Moscow whom Russia accuses of fraud and embezzlement. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170816/switzerland-ends-cooperation-with-russia-in-fraud-probe Wed, 16 Aug 2017 16:16:16 +0200 switzerland-ends-cooperation-with-russia-in-fraud-probe Russian heptathlete Tatyana Chernova was banned by the Lausanne-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Tuesday for doping and stripped of her 2011 world title, effectively handing the crown to Britain's Jessica Ennis-Hill. https://www.thelocal.ch/20161130/ennis-hill-gets-world-gold-as-russian-heptathlete-stripped-of-title Wed, 30 Nov 2016 09:15:23 +0100 ennis-hill-gets-world-gold-as-russian-heptathlete-stripped-of-title