Statement by President Higgins following Official Visit by the President of the Swiss Confederation, H.E. Karin Keller-Sutter
Date: Fri 30th May, 2025 | 12:42
President Michael D. Higgins yesterday welcomed the President of the Swiss Confederation, H.E. Karin Keller-Sutter, on an Official Visit to Ireland.
President Higgins had a meeting with President Keller-Sutter yesterday morning at Áras an Uachtaráin, where he took the opportunity of offering his sympathies on behalf of the people of Ireland to all those impacted by the recent tragedy in the village of Blatten following a glacier collapse.
The President recognised the huge impact of this event on a small community, but recognised that the services acted very swiftly and that those at risk had been evacuated, minimising the threat to life. However, the small community is devastated and the two Presidents discussed the plans which the Swiss Confederation has.
The two Presidents went on to discuss Ireland and Switzerland’s concern at the ongoing loss of life in Gaza. They noted the concerns that Switzerland and Ireland shared and the special role which countries like Ireland and Switzerland have as long-term proponents of diplomacy and respect for the conventions and rules of international law, including humanitarian access. They agreed that the unacceptability of blockage of the essentials of life – water, medicine and food – and the placing of impediments on their distribution, together with the undermining of the United Nations institutions was a view they shared.
Yesterday evening, the two Presidents attended what President Higgins suggests is one of the most important cultural exchanges between the famous library of St Gallen and the National Museum of Ireland, which reflects 7 years of the finest cooperation between our cultural institutions. President Higgins was present to hear President Keller-Sutter speak as special guest and the curators and staff of both museums.
President Higgins stated that ‘Words on the Wave: Ireland and St Gallen in Early Medieval Europe’ is perhaps the finest combination of their manuscripts and found objects from Irish excavations and others.