Switzerland would grant Russian president Vladimir Putin immunity if he came to the country for talks on peace in Ukraine, despite the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant, it said Tuesday.
Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis told a press conference that, under certain circumstances, Putin would be allowed to set foot in Switzerland.
Last year, the Swiss government defined “the rules for granting immunity to a person under an international arrest warrant. If this person comes for a peace conference—not if they come for private reasons,” Cassis said.
French President Emmanuel Macron raised the possibility of a peace summit between Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky being held in Europe, in “a neutral country, maybe Switzerland.”
‘I’m pushing for Geneva,” Macron said in an interview.
Cassis said Switzerland was fully prepared to host such a meeting and highlighted the militarily neutral country’s long expertise in the field.
Cassis said he had “constantly reiterated this willingness” to organise such meetings during his contacts with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov over recent months.
Previously, Switzerland permitted Russia’s participation, with Valentina Matviyenko, president of the upper house of Russia’s Federal Assembly, attending despite international sanctions. Switzerland said it acted in accordance with law and international agreements.
Putin last visited Switzerland for his June 2021 summit with then-U.S. President Joe Biden.
