On the night of January 1, a major fire broke out at Le Constellation bar during New Year’s celebrations in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana (canton of Valais). According to updated data from the authorities, about 40 people died and another 119 were injured, many with severe burns.
As reported by representatives of the Valais cantonal police at a briefing on January 2, 113 of the 119 victims have already been officially identified. Among them are 71 Swiss citizens, 14 French citizens, 11 Italian citizens, 4 Serbian citizens, and one citizen each from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, and Portugal. The nationality of 14 other victims is still being determined.
A detailed breakdown of the nationalities of the victims has not yet been officially published, as identification is still ongoing. However, the Italian Golf Federation has reported the death of 16-year-old athlete Emanuele Galepini; Reuters has named him as the first confirmed Italian citizen among the victims.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ukraine has not yet received confirmation of the presence of Ukrainian citizens among the dead or injured; the Ukrainian Embassy in Switzerland is in contact with local authorities and law enforcement agencies.
The investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing; among the versions discussed by the media with reference to the investigation is the use of sparklers/spark candles during service in the crowded establishment.
The Swiss economy contracted by 0.5% in the third quarter of 2025 compared to the previous quarter due to a decline in exports amid the trade conflict with the United States.
Official data confirmed the preliminary estimate announced at the beginning of last week.
This is the first decline in the Swiss economy since the second quarter of 2023.
In August, the US imposed a 39% tariff on imports from Switzerland, the highest rate among all developed economies. The countries later concluded a trade agreement, and the tariff was reduced to 15%.
‘The data should be viewed in the context of recent volatility in foreign trade,’ the press release said. ‘Strong exports of chemical and pharmaceutical products in anticipation of changes in US foreign trade policy triggered a compensatory decline in the following months.’
According to revised data, Swiss GDP grew by 0.2% in April-June (previously estimated at 0.1%).
Earlier, the Experts Club information and analytical centre made a video analysis of the prospects for the Ukrainian and global economies. For more details, see the video — https://youtu.be/kQsH3lUvMKo?si=F4IOLdLuVbYmEh5P
Switzerland will restrict the granting of temporary protection status to Ukrainian refugees from western regions of Ukraine from November 1, 2025, according to SRF television. The decision was made by the Swiss Federal Council as part of a review of the policy on granting S status, which has been in effect for Ukrainian citizens since March 2022. Under the new rules, the state will distinguish between regions of Ukraine where it is considered safe to return and those where it is still unsafe to stay.
According to the government’s decision, the return of Ukrainians is considered acceptable in the following regions: Volyn, Rivne, Lviv, Ternopil, Zakarpattia, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Chernivtsi.
The new restrictions will take effect on November 1, 2025, and will only apply to new applications. Ukrainians who have already been granted protection status are not affected by the new rules.
The Federal Council emphasized that, overall, the temporary protection regime S remains in place, as “a lasting stabilization of the situation in Ukraine does not appear realistic in the medium term.” However, the country’s parliament had previously obliged the government to establish a more differentiated approach depending on the applicants’ regions of origin.
The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) will continue to consider each application individually. In cases where the applicant’s origin indicates a region recognized as safe, the application for protection will be rejected.
If the return of a particular person proves legally impossible or individually unacceptable, they will be allowed to remain in Switzerland temporarily.
Ukrainians who are unable to obtain S protection status under the new rules will still be able to apply for asylum or leave for other European countries.
The Federal Council also confirmed that the final abolition of the S protection regime is not planned before March 2027.
Experts note that Bern’s decision reflects Switzerland’s gradual transition to the selective application of protection status, focused on the level of security in specific regions of Ukraine and reducing the burden on the national migration system.
According to SRF, among Ukrainians currently in Switzerland under S status, about 10% come from regions recognized by the government as safe.
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The majority of Ukrainians express a positive attitude towards Switzerland, although a significant number of respondents remain neutral. This is evidenced by the results of an all-Ukrainian sociological survey conducted by Active Group in cooperation with the Experts Club information and analytical center in August 2025.
According to the data, 60.3% of Ukrainians have a positive attitude towards Switzerland (42.0% – mostly positive, 18.3% – completely positive). Only 1.7% of respondents expressed a negative attitude (1.3% – mostly negative, 0.3% – completely negative). At the same time , 36.7% remain neutral, and 1.7% said they did not have enough information about the country.
“For Ukrainians, Switzerland is associated with reliability, stability and humanitarian support that the country provides in difficult times. The high level of trust reflects the positive image of Switzerland, despite its certain detachment from global politics,” commented Alexander Poznyi, co-founder of Active Group.
In his turn, Maxim Urakin, founder of Experts Club, focused on economic ties:
“In the first half of 2025, trade between Ukraine and Switzerland exceeded $928 million. At the same time, Ukrainian exports amounted to only $44 million, while imports from Switzerland reached almost $884 million. The negative balance of more than $839 million is significant, indicating Ukraine’s significant dependence on imports from this country,” he emphasized.
The survey was part of a broader program of research on international sympathies and antipathies of Ukrainians in the current geopolitical context.
The full video is available here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgC9TPnMoMI&t
You can subscribe to the Experts Club YouTube channel here:
https://www.youtube.com/@ExpertsClub
ACTIVE GROUP, DIPLOMACY, EXPERTS CLUB, Poznyi, SOCIOLOGY, SWITZERLAND, TRADE, URAKIN
Most Ukrainians express a positive attitude towards Switzerland, although a significant proportion of respondents remain neutral. This is evidenced by the results of a nationwide sociological survey conducted by Active Group in collaboration with the information and analytical center Experts Club in August 2025.
According to the data, 60.3% of Ukrainians have a positive opinion of Switzerland (42.0% — mostly positive, 18.3% — completely positive). Only 1.7% of respondents expressed a negative attitude (1.3% — mostly negative, 0.3% — completely negative). At the same time, 36.7% remain neutral, and 1.7% said they did not have enough information about the country.
“Ukrainians associate Switzerland with reliability, stability, and humanitarian support, which the country provides in difficult times. The high level of trust indicates Switzerland’s positive image, despite a certain detachment in global politics,” commented Active Group co-founder Oleksandr Pozniy.
In turn, Maksim Urakin, founder of Experts Club, emphasized economic ties:
“In the first half of 2025, trade turnover between Ukraine and Switzerland exceeded $928 million. At the same time, Ukrainian exports amounted to only $44 million, while imports from Switzerland reached almost $884 million. The negative balance of more than $839 million is significant, indicating Ukraine’s substantial dependence on imports from this country,” he stressed.
The survey was part of a broader program of research into the international sympathies and antipathies of Ukrainians in the current geopolitical context.
The full video can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgC9TPnMoMI&t
You can subscribe to the Experts Club YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@ExpertsClub
ACTIVE GROUP, DIPLOMACY, EXPERTS CLUB, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, SWITZERLAND, TRADE, URAKIN
Switzerland is maintaining its level of involvement in helping Ukraine with humanitarian response despite the global recession in donor support, said Serge Umov, Head of Humanitarian Aid in Ukraine at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
“As for Switzerland, I am pleased to announce that we are not reducing our humanitarian commitments. Our assistance is not as large as that provided by the United States and other European partners. But we are maintaining our involvement for at least the next few years. We do not plan to reduce our efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to Ukraine,“ said Serge Umov during a roundtable discussion titled ”Humanitarian Action in War: Protection of Personnel, Innovation and Influence on World Politics” at Interfax-Ukraine.
At the same time, according to the representative of the Swiss Agency, the current crisis opens up opportunities to rethink approaches to humanitarian response.
“We will need, and we are already doing, to change some things in our approaches and the way we operate. Every crisis also opens up new opportunities,” he added.
He called localization of humanitarian aid and support for the capacity of Ukrainian organizations one of the priorities of the conditions.
