The Club welcomed Ambassador Scott Miller, the U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Swiss Confederation and to the Principality of Liechtenstein, on August 31 at the Hôtel Métropole in Geneva.
Ambassador Miller arrived in Switzerland in January of this year. His mission has been directly impacted by the war in Ukraine, and he is therefore focused on working with the Swiss government to further financial sanctions against Russia.
One of his key priorities is to secure the interests of US citizens in Switzerland, including their health and safety. There are between 35,000 and 80,000 US citizens living in Switzerland and 1 million US tourists visiting Switzerland every year.
Another key priority is the expansion of trade and investment between the United States and Switzerland. He noted that the United States has recently surpassed Germany as the largest market for Swiss exports and Switzerland is the 7th largest investor in the United States. He also informed the audience that 30 Swiss companies have committed to creating or have created apprenticeship programs modeled after Swiss programs at their US facilities—an initiative first launched by former Ambassador Suzi LeVine.
“It’s not the job of a lifetime, it’s the job of a thousand lifetimes,” the Ambassador said. He related the extraordinary story of his efforts to alleviate the baby formula shortage in the United States in May. He and his team were able to negotiate with the CEO of Nestlé to provide 80 tons of medical grade baby formula, and to secure a military airlift to transport the formula to the United States within a matter of days.
Enthusiastic, extremely knowledgeable on key issues, and eager to meet and exchange with the public, Ambassador Miller was very generous with his time and stayed well past his scheduled departure to ensure he could meet everyone. He promised to come back to visit the club soon, and hopes to join us next year at our annual July 4th celebration.