Focused on the mission, despite the emotions
Federal Councillors Elisabeth Baume-Schneider and Beat Jans both paid an official visit to Egypt in November 2025. On each occasion, they were provided with close protection by fedpol, under conditions that were at times gruelling.
A sprawling capital city, Cairo is as well known for being home to the Pyramids of Giza as it is for its massive traffic jams. This was the backdrop to the sometimes chaotic daily routine that two officers from the Federal Security Service (FSS) had the opportunity to experience firsthand in November 2025, while accompanying two official visits to Egypt. For Vanessa and Cédric, it all began on site a few days before Elisabeth Baume-Schneider’s arrival in Cairo on 1 and 2 November. The two officers also conducted reconnaissance in preparation for Beat Jans’s visit to the same country two weeks later.
Two visits by government officials to the same country within a few weeks of each other are unusual, to say the least. This has advantages for both close protection specialists, allowing them to streamline their reconnaissance programme. These reconnaissance visits are an opportunity to liaise with the local Swiss embassy and authorities, and to inspect the locations that the Federal Councillors will be visiting.
A slight sense of apprehension at the start
Cédric, for whom this was his first trip abroad in this capacity, made no secret of the fact that he felt a little apprehensive. “It is possible to be familiar with a country from having spent beach vacations there, but to know nothing about the security situation on the ground. We had many questions about how relations with our partners would work,” he explains.
“It is possible to be familiar with a country from having spent beach vacations there, but to know nothing about the security situation on the ground. We had many questions about how relations with our partners would work. ”
Cédric, officer
fedpol is responsible for the security of Swiss government officials during their trips abroad, but it is the host country that is in charge of implementing the security measures. “We submit a request for security arrangements to the local authorities based on our analysis, but the measures ultimately put in place sometimes hold surprises for us. Negotiations are then necessary to reach an agreement,” explains Vanessa.
Traffic uncertainties
In the case of these two visits to Egypt, the concerns of the two officers were quickly put to rest. Initial communications with the Swiss embassy went well, as did the coordination with the Egyptian authorities. Traffic, however, unsurprisingly lived up to its reputation and required various adjustments to the schedules of the two Federal Councillors. During her two days in Egypt, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider first visited an archaeological site in Cairo, then attended the inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum, before travelling to Luxor for discussions with Swiss archaeologists.
Highlights
Two weeks later, Beat Jans’s official programme in Cairo began with a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs. This was followed, among other things, by several visits to reception centres for refugees, particularly those fleeing conflicts in Sudan and Gaza. Even though they were following a very specific mission plan, Vanessa and Cédric admitted that certain moments left a particularly deep impression on them. “These visits had a greater emotional impact than we had anticipated, especially when we visited the UN refugee registration centre in Cairo with Beat Jans,” says Cédric. Despite this, both officers “always stayed focused on the mission,” adds Vanessa.
The two officers also worked long hours, sometimes approaching twenty hours a day. “We conducted reconnaissance alongside the visits, and then sometimes we still had to negotiate with the local authorities,” says Vanessa. But the two officers agree: they are now ready to undertake new missions of this kind.
Security measures on the rise due to global political conflicts