Helene Budliger Artieda (* 1965 in Zurich; [1] domiciled in Hitzkirch [1] ) is a Swiss diplomat and Director of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) as State Secretary since August 2022. She is a former director of resources at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and was ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, based in Bangkok, from 2019 to 2022.
Her career at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) began in 1985 as a secretary in Bern. In this function, Helene Budliger made her first foreign assignments in Lagos in Nigeria, Havana in Cuba and San Francisco in the US. [2] She completed the FDFA stage in Bern and the practical part as a consular employee in Strasbourg. [1] She successfully completed the stage in 1994. [3] Budliger Artieda's first stop after her training took her to Lima, Peru, where she met her future husband. [3]
During her employment at the Swiss Embassy in Colombia, Helen Budliger Artieda studied business administration in Bogotá. [1] She completed her studies with a Master's degree. She returned to Switzerland in 2000 and held various positions in the FDFA's Finance Division. From 1 July 2006 to 2008, Budliger Artieda was Head of Finance at the FDFA. [1] In 2008, Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey appointed Helen Budliger Artieda as the first female director of the FDFA. On 1 October 2008, Budliger Artieda took over the Directorate for Resources at the FDFA from Martin Dahinden, [1] who became head of the SDC. Until September 2015, she headed 380 employees and managed an annual budget volume of three billion Swiss francs. [3]
In September 2015, Helene Budiger Artieda became Swiss Ambassador to South Africa. [4] Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini and Mauritius were also part of her remit. [3] She was also Ambassador to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in Gaborone. [4] On 14 December 2018, the Federal Council appointed Helene Budliger Artieda as Swiss ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. [4] She took up the new post in October 2019, succeeding Ivo Sieber. [1] In 2022, she was proposed to the Federal Council by a search committee as the successor to Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch as Director of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). She took up the post on 1 August 2022. [5]
Helene Budliger Artieda is married and has her second home in Eich LU. She grew up in Dübendorf. [3]
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is geographically divided among the Swiss Plateau, the Alps and the Jura; the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, whereas most of the country's population of 9 million are concentrated on the plateau, which hosts its largest cities and economic centres, including Zurich, Geneva, and Basel.
The foreign relations of Switzerland are the primary responsibility of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). Some international relations of Switzerland are handled by other departments of the federal administration of Switzerland.
The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, so named since 1979, is one of the seven Departments of the Swiss government federal administration of Switzerland, and corresponds in its range of tasks to the ministry of foreign affairs in other countries. The department is always headed by one of the members of the Swiss Federal Council. Since 1 November 2017, the department is headed by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis.
Switzerland is not a member state of the European Union (EU). It is associated with the Union through a series of bilateral treaties in which Switzerland has adopted various provisions of European Union law in order to participate in the Union's single market, without joining as a member state. Among Switzerland's neighbouring countries, all but one are EU member states.
The federal administration of Switzerland is the ensemble of agencies that constitute, together with the Swiss Federal Council, the executive branch of the Swiss federal authorities. The administration is charged with executing federal law and preparing draft laws and policy for the Federal Council and the Federal Assembly.
Swiss–Turkish relations are foreign relations between Switzerland and Turkey. Switzerland has an embassy in Ankara and a consulate-general in Istanbul. Turkey has an embassy in Bern and consulates-general in Zürich and Geneva. Both countries are full members of the Council of Europe, the OECD, the OSCE and the WTO.
Foreign relations exist between Azerbaijan and Switzerland. Azerbaijan has an embassy in Bern as does Switzerland in Baku. Both countries are full members of the Council of Europe and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
Jean-Daniel Gerber was born in 1946. He is married to Elisabeth Gerber-Graber, with whom he has two grown children.
China–Switzerland relations officially began in 1918. Economic relations between the two nations grew substantially in the 21st century, although relations became somewhat strained around 2020 due to Swiss criticism of China's persecution of the Uyghurs and the 2020 Hong Kong national security law. However, in 2024 relations became warmer again, with China adding Switzerland to the list of European countries whose citizens enjoy visa-free access for tourist travel. This was followed by a launch of negotiations regarding an updated free trade agreement, which were previously delayed by Swiss concerns about the human rights situation in China.
Swissnex is a network of education, research, innovation and art outposts aimed at connecting Switzerland with the world's innovation hubs. The network is managed by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) in cooperation with the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). There are currently five Swissnex branches: Boston (2000), San Francisco (2003), Shanghai, China (2008), Bangalore, India (2011) and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2013). One Swissnex office operated in Singapore from 2004 to 2015.
Peter Maurer is a Swiss diplomat who was the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) from 1 July 2012 until October 2022 and is currently President of the Basel Institute on Governance.
Manuel Sager is a Swiss diplomat who served as the Ambassador of Switzerland to the United States from 2010 to 2014. He was appointed to the position in December 2010.
Thomas Greminger is a Swiss diplomat. He served as Secretary-General for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) from July 2017 to July 2020. Since May 2021, he has been the Director of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP). He is a general staff officer in the Swiss army.
Livia Leu stylized Leu Agosti is a Swiss attorney and diplomat. She currently serves as the State Secretary and EU-negotiator since 14 October 2020. Leu previously served as the Swiss Ambassador to Iran between 2009 and 2013. She was the first female from Europe to hold this position. From 2018 to 2020, she served as the Swiss Ambassador to France and Monaco. In fall 2023, she will succeed Paul Seger as Swiss Ambassador to Germany.
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Jean-Jacques de Dardel, born in 1954, is a senior Swiss civil servant with a rich background in International Diplomatic Affairs, Academia and Statesmanship.
Jean-François Paroz is a Swiss diplomat and an ambassador from Moutier, Canton of Bern. Since December 2020 he is the Swiss Ambassador to Hungary.
Pascale Baeriswyl is a Swiss diplomat, Ambassador and currently Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations (UN) in New York. She was the first woman to hold the post of State Secretary of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) and has headed the Swiss Mission to the UN in New York since June 2020. From January 2023 to December 2024, Baeriswyl will represent Switzerland on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), during the country's first ever term as an elected member of the council.
Daniela Stoffel is a Swiss diplomat. She has been State Secretary for International Finance at the Federal Department of Finance since 1 March 2019.
Switzerland–Syria relations are the bilateral and diplomatic relations between these two countries. Syria had an embassy in Bern and has a Consulate-General in Geneva. Switzerland is accredited to Syria from its embassy in Beirut.
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