Peace and security policy

The federal government has the constitutional duty of preserving the independence and security of the country (Art. 2, § 1 FC) as well as contributing to its peaceful coexistence with other nations (Art. 54, § 2 FC). Traditionally, peacebuilding is a task of foreign policy while preserving independence always fell under the domain of security policy, to which foreign policy would contribute so-called ‘outreach components’.