Posted near the eye of the storm, Simon Geissbühler, 51, spoke with the Daily Gazette. He refuses to describe his mandate as “dangerous”, having in the past “often visited war zones”. Which is not to say that no armed attacks occur in Tel Aviv. Recently, the diplomat had to take refuge with his family and staff in the underground shelter of his residence. On October 1, Iran fired numerous rockets at the Israeli secret service, “and the projectiles flew about two kilometers from our house, in four waves of ten minutes each. The explosions caused by the anti-aircraft defenses were enormous and incredibly loud.
“Not here to make peace”
His mandate is politically sensitive. “When I arrive on Friday at the end of a work week, I sometimes have trouble remembering what I did: there is so much going on.” He must stay the course – a course that he formulates concisely: “My mandate is to represent Switzerland. I am responsible for bilateral relations between Switzerland and Israel.” What about the Palestinians? “Our office in Ramallah is there for that.” Isn't that a bit of an easy answer, asks our colleague? “No, it’s important to understand what my job is. I am not the ambassador for peace in the Middle East,” he asserts, before adding immediately: “But of course, we are committed to peace in the region. It is also in Switzerland’s interest.”
Recently, Simon Geissbühler publicly condemned anti-Semitic attacks in Amsterdam, on the sidelines of a football match involving an Israeli team. He acknowledges that “Israeli fans provoked, but that does not justify what happened next.” A clear speech gives “credibility” to Switzerland.
Likewise, the ambassador in Tel Aviv “expressed himself in the other direction”: “When Israel's Finance Minister Smotrich spoke of the annexation of the West Bank,” he made himself the author “an extreme statement. I condemned it in consultation with the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs in Bern.”
“No ping-pong between the two camps”
Simon Geissbühler, however, warns against the idea of playing “ping-pong” between the two camps. “We express our disagreement, regularly and forcefully, on the war in Gaza, whether in Bern or in New York at the UN Security Council. But that doesn’t mean we can’t say anything about anti-Semitism.”
A historian by training, author of research on the Holocaust, the fifty-year-old does not consider himself a friend of Israel. “I would rather speak of critical empathy.” He notes the Confederation's attempts to calm relations between Israelis and Palestinians. “Switzerland wants to reactivate dialogue on various levels. We are respected as a neutral actor and act discreetly behind the scenes. But it remains difficult. People are traumatized and tired of war. Pessimism is widespread.”
There is therefore no choice: we must “remain realistic”. Which absolutely does not mean that nothing should be tried and that nothing can be done. Quite the contrary.”
