Swiss neutrality: Flexible wartime practice versus post-war secrecy obsession

Switzerland's commitment to neutrality, a cornerstone of its foreign policy, has been subject to historical scrutiny, particularly concerning its flexible application during wartime. A key point of contention revolves around "Manœuvre H," a secret collaboration between Swiss General Henri Guisan and the French army, initiated shortly after Guisan's election as general on August 30, 1939.

This clandestine arrangement, which aimed to coordinate military actions in the event of a Swiss invasion by Hitler's Germany, remained undisclosed for three decades. Its revelation in 1970 prompted a historical review. Historian Edgar Bonjour, commissioned by the Federal Council to document Swiss neutrality during World War II, dedicated a few pages to the affair.

Bonjour's conclusion, delivered in 1970, offered a nuanced assessment. He deemed Guisan's actions "hardly criticizable" from the perspective of neutrality law. However, he also stated that the military agreements, made in peacetime for potential wartime collaboration, "remain at the extreme limit of what is permissible" in terms of neutrality policy. Bonjour noted that Germany could have interpreted these conventions as a casus belli, a pretext for armed intervention.

The article suggests that while Guisan's actions were legally permissible, they highlight the complex and often challenging balancing act Switzerland performs to maintain its neutrality, especially when faced with external threats. The emphasis on secrecy, particularly in the post-war era concerning such historical events, appears to be a persistent theme, hinting at ongoing debates about transparency and the interpretation of neutrality.

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Viewed from the angle of neutrality law, Guisan's conduct is hardly criticizable. Considered from the angle of neutrality policy, military conventions concluded in peacetime on an eventual basis to regulate collaboration in wartime nevertheless remain at the extreme limit of what is permissible, especially if they were made with only one of the parties. Germany could have made it a casus belli and the pretext for an armed intervention.