Welcome to Alain Berset’s personal website. He has been Secretary General of the Council of Europe since 2024; his speeches, news and agenda are gathered here. Before Strasbourg, Switzerland: a member of the Federal Council from 2012 to 2023, and President of the Confederation in 2018, then again in 2023.
Latest video
Churchill Symposium 2026 — “From Zurich to Strasbourg”, lecture by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe
16 September 2026ZurichCouncil of Europe1 h 14Eighty years after Winston Churchill’s speech at the University of Zurich (19 September 1946), the Europa Institut of the University of Zurich invited Alain Berset to deliver the 2026 Churchill Lecture: “From Zurich to Strasbourg: European unity in a time of war and rupture”. He argues that Europe’s security rests on law and on strong democratic institutions, not on armed force alone. Lecture in English, followed by a discussion with the audience.
Source: Europa Institut, Université de Zurich (Mediaspace UZH) · Watch on the source site
News
Secretary General Berset to open Council of Europe UN Observer Office during General Assembly week in New York
17 September 2026 — Strasbourg · Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset will visit New York and Washington D.C. from 20 to 26 September, attending the UN General Assembly high-level week, opening the Council of Europe’s new Permanent Observer Office to the United Nations and holding meetings with senior leaders and public discussions on multilateralism, democratic security and the international law-based order.
Council of Europe Business and Human Rights Forum fosters collaboration and innovative solutions
17 September 2026 — Strasbourg · The Council of Europe Business and Human Rights Forum – BRAVE 2026 –, held in Strasbourg on 17 September is examining the need for strong legal and policy responses, increased cooperation and innovative solutions to enhance compliance with Council of Europe standards in the private sector, including to counter forced labour and human trafficking, with a particular focus on the risks in the context of the green and digital transitions.
Press
- Russia Systematically Violates Human Rights in Occupied Ukrainian Territories, Council of Europe Says
- Council of Europe: Human Rights Situation in Occupied Ukrainian Territories Continues to Deteriorate, Warns Against Russian Duma Elections There
- CoE Secretary General highlights the role of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Türkiye
- Berset: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and Turkey in Europe's new geopolitical center of gravity
- Prince Albert II calls for stronger multilateralism as Monaco hosts Council of Europe ambassadors
Speeches
Churchill Symposium – From Zurich to Strasbourg: European unity in a time of war and rupture
16 September 2026 — Zurich, Switzerland · Black and white. Place Kléber, 12 August 1949. Churchill in front of a full square. Less than three years earlier, in this hall, he asked for a Council of Europe. By the time that photograph was taken, it existed.
Garden Party annuelle de la Représentation permanente de la France
8 July 2026 — Strasbourg, Villa Oppenheimer · Merci Monsieur l’Ambassadeur de France, cher Pap Ndiaye, de nous réunir ici ce soir pour célébrer le 14 juillet — une date ô combien symbolique pour toutes celles et tous ceux qui chérissent la liberté. Cette liberté qui comme l’écrivait Albert Camus est la « seule valeur impérissable de l’histoire. » L’histoire, justement. Peu de pays en ont autant donné à la liberté que la France. Et peu de dates en disent autant que ce 14 juillet 1789. Alors ce soir, permettez-moi un raccourci : imaginons…
Agenda
Visit to New York and Washington: UN General Assembly and opening of the Council of Europe Observer Office
20 September 2026 - 26 September 2026
Visit of Ms Iliana Iotova, President of Bulgaria
16 September 2026Alain Berset in Zurich: 80 years after Churchill’s speech, what is the future of European unity?
16 September 2026 12:00 am - 11:59 pmCouncil of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset to pay official visit to Latvia
10 September 2026 12:00 am - 11 September 2026 11:59 pm
Former President of the Swiss Confederation and Head of the Federal Department of Home Affairs in charge of health, social security, culture, gender equality, prevention of racism, amongst other areas.
A Swiss politician with longstanding experience at the highest executive and legislative levels engaged in solution-oriented consensus-building, decision-making and responsible for the management of complex structures.
Fully committed to multilateralism, international law, the rule of law and human rights and steadfastly engaged for the respect of democratic principles and strong institutions at the national and international levels.
I have always been committed to human rights, democracy and the rule of law. As Secretary General of the Council of Europe, the Reykjavík Declaration is the compass guiding my commitment to our shared values and the people who call our continent home.
Signing ceremony with Moldovan President Maia Sandu during her official visit to Switzerland. Photo: Keystone
Exchange with students at the University of Lausanne during the state visit of President Emmanuel Macron to Switzerland, 16 November 2023. Photo: FDFA
Discussion with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the sidelines of the European Political Community summit in Granada. Photo: Keystone
→ Committed
to promoting operational action by the Council of Europe supporting Ukraine and its people in the face of Russia’s war of aggression.
→ Determined
to ensure that the Council of Europe carries real political weight on our continent.
→ Convinced
that democratic principles and ‘living together’ are the core strengths of a European family of nations founded on the rule of law.
→ Resolved
to put the commitments made at the Summit in Reykjavík into action.
Official meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa. Photo: Office of the Prime Minister
At the WEF in Davos with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska, 17 January 2023. Photo: Keystone
Exchange with UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 in Dubai. Photo: COP28