Press sparing with praise for Federal Councillor Viola Amherd "didn't get the store under control either"
Following the announcement of her resignation from the Federal Council, the German-speaking Swiss media have been sparing with praise for Viola Amherd. Although she had brought movement to her Defense Department DDPS and also "knocked down stakes", too many things had gotten out of hand, was the tenor on Wednesday.
16.01.2025, 06:08
16.01.2025, 10:49
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- The Swiss-German press is sparing with praise for Viola Amherd, who surprised everyone on Wednesday by announcing her resignation.
- Although the Federal Councillor had brought movement to her Defense Department (DDPS) and also "knocked down stakes", she had also let too many things get out of hand, was the conclusion.
- In view of the geopolitical situation, Amherd could have played a key role as defense minister, according to the NZZ, as the army was facing the greatest challenge since the Cold War.
- Amherd had failed to create a strong leadership with a clear plan that would succeed in creating majorities.
NZZ: "Misunderstandings, failures, bad luck and mishaps"
"In view of the geopolitical situation, Amherd could have played a key role as defense minister," writes the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. After all, the army is facing its greatest challenge since the Cold War. However, in times of looming structural deficits, this is proving to be a feat of strength, and the issue of financing is splintering the conservative camp right up to the Federal Council.
"What is needed is a strong leader with a clear plan who succeeds in creating majorities," the NZZ continues. Amherd did not succeed in this. Instead, misunderstandings, failures, bad luck and mishaps in the Department of Defense repeatedly leaked out during 2024, "while the boss jetted around the world".
SRF: a moment of great pressure
Viola Amherd announced her resignation as Federal Councillor at a moment of great pressure, writes Swiss Radio and Television SRF. The SVP, the largest party, had demanded her resignation, several major projects from her department were in trouble, Ruag was causing scandals and the discussions about a real or fictitious financial gap in the army were reverberating.
However, during her six years in office, Amherd has "certainly been able to knock down stakes". In contrast to her predecessor Ueli Maurer, she managed to convince the electorate of the need for new fighter jets in the fall of 2020.
"Blick": Not getting a grip on the store
Amherd has inherited many problems from her SVP predecessors, writes Blick. But she also "didn't get the store under control". In addition, the culture of error in the DDPS does not seem to be very pronounced. Problems are played down or talked away completely, both externally and internally.
Critics would also accuse Amherd of preferring to put herself in the international shop window instead of solving problems in her own department, while at the same time moving the army ever closer to NATO.
"Watson": fed up
"Leaving so soon after the end of her presidential year raises a suspicion: She's had enough," writes "Watson" in its commentary on Amherd's resignation.
The defense minister had had enough of the mishaps in the DDPS, enough of the squabbles with Karin Keller-Sutter over the military budget, "enough of the bickering of the bourgeoisie over the alleged lack of a strategy for arming the army".
Although she had previously had nothing to do with security policy, Amherd had missed several opportunities to change departments. According to "Watson", the highlights of her time in office were the close vote in favor of the F-35 fighter jet and the Ukraine conference on the Bürgenstock last year.
CH Media: Party facing a test of strength
According to the CH Media newspapers, Amherd's resignation announcement has nothing to do with the SVP's calls for her resignation last weekend. "Amherd allegedly made her decision alone - not to say alone," commented CH Media.
She is thus putting the party to the test, "in which the future of the party is at stake". For the center, Amherd's successor is "a choice of direction that has a groundbreaking significance for the future of the party as a whole", writes CH Media.
"Tages-Anzeiger": The exception to the rule
"Exceptional cases. They shaped - indeed dominated - Viola Amherd's time as Minister of Defense," writes the Tages-Anzeiger. The first exception during her time in office was herself. She was the first woman ever to take over the Ministry of Defense. And the last exception was Amherd herself: "Hardly anyone has ever announced their resignation from the Federal Council in such an unpretentious and unspectacular manner."
