Bilateral relations between Switzerland and Turkey

Turkey has had close ties with Switzerland since the Turkish Republic was founded in 1923. The Lausanne Peace Treaty is regarded as the founding charter of the Republic of Turkey. It put an end to the Turkish liberation war (1919-1923) under Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk). Many Turkish students and political refugees had spent time in Switzerland, even during the latter days of the Ottoman Empire. In the liberal reform climate, they drafted the bases of the modern-day secular model of state for their homeland. In 1925, Switzerland and Turkey concluded a Treaty of Friendship and in 1926, as part of the reform of civil and marriage law, Atatürk had the progressive Swiss Civil Code (Zivilgesetzbuch, ZGB) adopted almost verbatim in Turkish law. The 80th anniversary of this adoption was celebrated in 2006.

The relationship between the two countries is good, if not always easy. Matters such as the Kurdish and Armenian questions are particularly sensitive and have affected bilateral relations on various occasions. After repressive military regimes were overthrown, contacts have intensified since the end of the 1990s and the two countries have engaged in regular political dialogue since 2001. Switzerland supports the reform efforts with a view to Turkey joining the European Union (EU). Turkey is able to play an important role as a bridge-builder between the Muslim world and the “West”.

Turkey is an important trade partner and a promising market for Switzerland. Over 320 Swiss firms operate there, providing around 10,000 jobs. Switzerland is the sixth biggest investor in Turkey, which is a member of the Swiss constituency group at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). With around 100,000 people (one fifth of whom have dual nationality), the Turkish colony in Switzerland is one of the country’s biggest foreign communities.
In the 1990s, Switzerland committed CHF 4 million to combating poverty in the eastern part of Turkey. Following the severe earthquake in 1999, it provided emergency aid and funds of CHF 20 million to support prevention and contingency programmes on earthquake safety.