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Original article: https://www.derbund.ch/adolf-ogi-petition-fordert-den-alt-bundesrat-als-ukraine-vermittler-571755060621

A petition from the Bern-based aid organization Human Front Aid is calling on Federal President Guy Parmelin to send the former Federal Councillor to Moscow as a mediator.

In brief:

• A petition is urging Federal President Guy Parmelin to appoint former Federal Councillor Adolf Ogi as a mediator in the war in Ukraine.
• Ogi is to earnestly appeal to Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy to end the war.
• Ogi himself describes an official negotiating mandate from the Federal Council as unrealistic, but emphasizes that the goal is to get people to start thinking about ending the war.

Bern native Bänz Margot has dedicated himself to helping civilian victims of the war in Ukraine. Through his aid organization Human Front Aid , he has been providing financial assistance since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion to people who have lost their homes to missile and drone attacks.

Margot spends most of the year in southeastern Ukraine, where he is stationed with his Ukrainian team. His organization's board of patrons includes several prominent figures from Bern, such as the rapper "Baze," National Councillor Reto Nause (The Centre), former government councillor Beatrice Simon (The Centre), and Bern city council members Matthias Aebischer (SP) and Alec von Graffenried (GFL).

Now, Margot, who grew up in Bern's Matte district, has made a surprising proposal: "The greatest humanitarian aid would be an end to the war," states a petitionthat he launched together with former Vice Chancellor and Federal Council spokesperson Oswald Sigg.

It calls on Federal President Guy Parmelin (SVP) to task former Federal Councillor Adolf Ogi (SVP) with seeking talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ogi is to "earnestly appeal" to the heads of state to end the war in Ukraine in order to facilitate a "just and lasting peace." With his direct and human communication style, Ogi once proved that he is capable of engaging with the world's most powerful leaders on equal terms.

Ogi welcomes the demand in principle. At the same time, however, a certain reserve is evident over the phone. "It is, of course, unrealistic that the Federal Council would grant me an official negotiating mandate." But perhaps the petition will get people thinking about the fact that we "must find ways to end this war," says Ogi.

Adolf Ogi in the queue with Putin

Shortly after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he suggested that Pope Francis, as a moral authority, should mediatebetween Ukraine and Russia. A similar initiative could surely be taken today by his successor, Pope Leo XIV., originate from.

Ogi served as President of the Swiss Confederation in 1993 and 2000. In 2000, he met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the UN Millennium Summit, which took place in New York from September 6 to 8. At an event hosted by then-US President Bill Clinton, he found himself standing directly in front of Putin in the queue due to the alphabetical order of their surnames.

"I spoke with Putin about sports and the Olympic Games," says Ogi. Following the end of his term as President at the end of 2000, the SVP politician stepped down from the Federal Council and became a UN Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace.

Slow-moving signature collection

The signature collection for the Human Front Aid petition is apparently proving to be a slow process, according to Oswald Sigg. "We do not know if this petition will achieve the desired success," the signature form also states. But perhaps it is possible to "make a small contribution toward making peace possible."

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