GENEVA: In a break with the European Union, Switzerland has decided not to adopt sanctions against China in connection with the repression of the Uighur minority, reported German news agency dpa.
The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs in Bern confirmed on Sunday a report in the newspaper NZZ am Sonntag that the Swiss government would not match the sanctions.
The government had made this decision after weighing various foreign policy and legal criteria, the department said.
EU sanctions were imposed on several Chinese individuals and a security agency in March 2021. The European Union accused them of involvement in the mass internment and degrading treatment of Uighurs and other Muslim minorities.
Beijing reacted with counter-sanctions against politicians and institutions in the EU. The United States has also imposed a host of sanctions on Beijing over the treatment of Uighurs.
The government of Switzerland, which is not a member of the EU, decided at the end of 2022 not to copy these measures. However, this was not communicated publicly until the NZZ am Sonntag reported on it.
Parliamentarians from the right-wing SVP and the liberal FDP expressed approval to the newspaper that Switzerland was not escalating tensions with China but was rather expressing criticism through bilateral dialogue.
Together, the two parties provide four of the seven members of the government.
Switzerland usually falls in line with the European Union when it comes to adopting punitive measures. Recent examples include actions taken against Russia and Iran. -Bernama