OSCE and the Council of Europe remain particularly important. At the same time, Switzerland should continue its successful strategy of establishing formal relations with non-European regional organisations such as the African Union and ASEAN in order to ensure more broad-based support for its independent foreign policy. To help it achieve critical mass, International Geneva should also become more broadly based within the surrounding area, with the Lake Geneva and French border regions more closely integrated. This will require political commitment by Swiss politicians and the development of a forward-looking host state strategy. In the multilateral context as elsewhere, Switzerland must pay particular attention to security policy issues. The erosion of international arms control is making Europe less safe. In cyberspace and in the field of artificial intelligence, rules are needed to prevent an arms race. Similarly, conflict prevention can only succeed if it is underpinned by multilateral agreements. Last but not least, Switzerland’s multilateral engagement should be more firmly rooted in domestic policy. Geneva’s unique assets, including its diversity of actors, together with the neutrality and credibility of Switzerland as a whole provide ideal conditions for positioning Geneva favourably for the future. This is all the more important given the mounting global competition for dialogue and regulation ‘hubs’. Geneva as a laboratory for reformed multilateralism Over the past 100 years, Switzerland has succeeded in making Geneva one of the world’s leading centres of international governance, where countless decisions are taken that improve the lives of millions of people. This focus on operational action is one of Geneva’s strengths. For Swiss foreign policy, Geneva offers a unique network of contacts that could be even more systematically utilised. In addition, International Geneva is a source of prosperity, accounting for more than 10% of cantonal GDP. The benefits for the country as a whole far outweigh the costs. The International Geneva brand, and indeed multilateralism itself, should feature more prominently in domestic politics. Geneva will be able to stand out from this competition by establishing itself as a leading centre for innovative forms of governance. These have qualities that go beyond intergovernmental cooperation as it currently exists, promoting the emergence of dynamic ecosystems involving a wide range of actors and helping to develop solutions on important future issues such as digitalisation. Defend international law and apply it in new areas International law is a life insurance policy for Switzerland. The country should therefore prioritise better compliance with existing obligations, especially in the area of international humanitarian law, which is coming under increasing pressure. In new fields such as digital transformation, legal instruments must be clarified and adapted to the new realities (see section 3.5). Switzerland should be at the forefront of these efforts. The same goes International Geneva facts and figures (2018) International Geneva facts and figures (2018) 177 = states represented by a permanent mission > 3,300 meetings per year = 4,000 37 employees > 2,200 delegates = international organisations = 4,400 visits by heads of state, ministers and other senior officials 400 20,000 = indirect and induced jobs GDP 14% of jobs in the canton of Geneva 2,700 employees NGOs employees 30,000 = 11.3% = GDP 1% Source: FDFA 2028 Foreign Policy Vision 34