Swiss President Engages Trump on Trade, Eyes Swift Solutions
April 9, 2025 – Bern, Switzerland – Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter held a pivotal phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday, April 8, to address the escalating trade tensions sparked by Trump’s sweeping tariffs, including a 31% duty on Swiss imports. The conversation, confirmed by Keller-Sutter in a statement today, signals Switzerland’s push for dialogue over retaliation as it grapples with the fallout of Trump’s aggressive trade policies, which have rattled global markets and drawn ire from the Alpine nation.
“We agreed to continue talks in the interest of both our countries,” Keller-Sutter said, expressing optimism about finding “solutions in the very near future.” The call comes amid Switzerland’s indignation over the tariffs, imposed on April 2 under Trump’s “reciprocal” trade agenda, which hit the U.S.’s sixth-largest foreign investor with a rate higher than the 20% levied on the European Union. “The U.S. has relied on its own calculations, which Switzerland cannot comprehend,” Keller-Sutter noted last week, underscoring the stakes for a country that sent nearly 19% of its 2024 goods exports—worth billions—to the U.S.
Unlike Canada’s tit-for-tat auto tariffs or China’s 84% counter-levies, Switzerland has opted for diplomacy. Keller-Sutter’s approach reflects a strategic calm, avoiding the retaliatory spiral gripping other nations while highlighting Swiss contributions to the U.S. economy, like over $300 billion in direct investments and 500,000 American jobs tied to Swiss firms. “We’re ready to discuss and show we have benefits for the U.S.,” Economics Minister Guy Parmelin echoed recently, hinting at potential concessions to soften the blow.
The tariffs, part of Trump’s broader 10%-to-50% import duties (with China facing 104%), have already shaved trillions off global stocks and stoked recession fears. For Switzerland, the stakes are high—pharmaceuticals, a tariff-exempt lifeline, make up over half its U.S. exports, but precision instruments and machinery face the full brunt. Keller-Sutter’s urgency suggests a bid to secure exemptions or a bilateral deal, leveraging past goodwill from Trump’s 2019 openness to a U.S.-Swiss free trade pact during a meeting with then-President Ueli Maurer.
Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One yesterday, hinted at flexibility, saying he’s open to talks “if they offer something phenomenal.” Whether Switzerland can carve out a deal remains unclear—50-plus nations are reportedly clamoring for negotiations—but Keller-Sutter’s proactive stance marks a shift from stunned silence to calculated engagement. As the Swiss franc weakens and businesses like Novartis and Roche brace for impact, the clock is ticking. For now, Bern’s bet is on Trump’s dealmaking instincts, hoping to turn tariff chaos into a handshake that preserves a $122 billion trade relationship.
