Japan has committed to investments worth hundreds of billions in the dispute over U.S. tariffs. Despite these enormous concessions, Tokyo remains in a difficult position, as the United States will exercise extensive control over the implementation of the deal. For Dominique Ursprung of the ZHAW Center for Geopolitics and Competitiveness, this is a striking example of how even Washington’s closest allies are being blackmailed today.

Switzerland, Ursprung emphasizes in a joint guest article for the NZZ with Sandro Fuchs, ZHAW Professor of Public Management, must carefully explore its room for maneuver and should not allow itself to be drawn into making promises of such astronomical magnitude. If the price is higher than the damage caused here by the 39 percent base tariffs, there would be no reason for the Federal Council to enter into such an agreement.

Thanks to a successful free trade policy, Switzerland—mostly together with the EFTA states—has a strong network of free trade agreements worldwide, which now benefits it all the more: “Those who have alternatives are less susceptible to blackmail,” says Ursprung.