Upon arriving in the White House for the second time, Donald Trump is expected to adopt an isolationist and unpredictable foreign policy. If this comes to pass, how will Switzerland, which favours a stable, rules-based international system, maintain a smooth relationship with the United States, a key trading partner? The day after the Republican candidate decisively won the 2024 US presidential race, Suzi LeVine, the US ambassador to Switzerland under Barack Obama, was, like many, coming to terms with Trump’s imminent return to the Oval Office. “This election is going to have repercussions for decades to come,” said LeVine, “and not just in the United States, but for everybody – and every creature – in the world.” How best to prepare for some of Trump’s more radical foreign policy ideas is a question now preoccupying the world’s capitals. The president-elect has threatened to impose high tariffs on US imports, withdraw support for the transatlantic defence alliance NATO, and end ...
