Critical view: The Roman Attorney General Francesco Lo Voi and his Valais counterpart Beatrice Pilloud met in Bern. Image: KEYSTONE
On Thursday, the Roman Attorney General met with his Valais counterpart in Bern. Why Italy is putting so much pressure on Switzerland and France is staying quiet: an expert explains.
February 20, 2026, 10:00 a.mFeb 20, 2026, 10:04
The immense political pressure that Italy is putting on Switzerland has had an effect. The public prosecutor’s office in the canton of Valais met with the one from Rome on Thursday. The background is the fire disaster in Crans-Montana, in which 41 people died and over 100 were injured, some seriously.
Italy is angry, Italy is foaming: About the lack of autopsies. About the compensation for the victims’ relatives, which is a long time coming. And about the fact that bar operator Jacques Moretti was released on bail.
The investigations are an “insult to the victims,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Meloni summoned the Italian ambassador from Bern back to Rome. Meloni indicated that he would only return when Italy was allowed to participate in the investigation in Crans-Montana.
While Rome shoots towards Valais, Paris remains noticeably quiet. President Emmanuel Macron traveled to Martigny for the memorial event, but refrained from criticizing it.
In response to Watson’s request, the French Foreign Ministry wrote that France attaches great importance to ensuring that those responsible for this disaster are held accountable. But: “Many questions relate to ongoing legal proceedings. Because we respect the principle of the independence of the judiciary and the separation of powers, we do not provide any answers.”
Different sister nations
How can the contrast between calm France and emotional Italy be explained? “I was surprised at how big the differences are between the two countries,” Stefan Ulrich told watson. For the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” he was a correspondent in both countries, first in Rome and then in Paris.
Stefan Ulrich won the Theodor Wolff Prize in 2003, one of the most important journalistic awards in German-speaking countries.
His expectation was that France and Italy, which are similar in language, culture and cuisine, would also behave like “sister nations” politically.
But Ulrich noted: In many ways they are fundamentally different. For example, and this is clearly evident in the Crans-Montana fire disaster, Italian politicians deal with the judiciary in a completely different way. “In Italy, the judiciary is regularly accused of being biased,” says Ulrich.
France doesn’t know that. Trust in the judiciary is higher than in Italy, says Ulrich. There are historical reasons for this: France is a centralized state that has grown over centuries. This also feeds the national self-image, says Ulrich. “France likes to see itself as a sober state that is guided by reason and not by feelings.”
However, this self-image has recently begun to falter: With social movements such as the gilets jaunes, society is polarizing. Since the right-wing student Quentin Deranque was killed last week, presumably by left-wing extremist activists, the political sovereignty of interpretation has been raging in France. “This debate is extremely emotional,” says Ulrich.
This has been a reality in Italy for a long time. Until the second half of the 19th century, it was controlled by often changing rulers. “This explains the attitude that still prevails among many Italians today, according to which the state does not protect citizens, but rather sucks them dry,” says Ulrich.
The fights between politics and the judiciary go back to Silvio Berlusconi. The repeated Italian Prime Minister almost reflexively insulted judges and prosecutors as toghe rosse – “red robes” who would judge him with left-wing to socialist lenses.
Giorgia Meloni follows this tradition: She also accuses Italian politicians of acting politically biased at every opportunity – whether in their planned judicial reform or their legally controversial asylum centers in Albania.
Giorgia Meloni has built a legally controversial reception center for asylum seekers in Albania.Image: EPA CHIGI PALACE PRESS OFFICE
“These fights between politics and the judiciary ultimately damage both sides,” says Ulrich. Politics because it proves time and time again that it does not respect the separation of powers. “But of course the judiciary also suffers if it is constantly discredited.”
Because Italy’s politicians are in constant conflict with their own judiciary, they have little fear of attacking the Valais public prosecutor’s office in its investigation into Crans-Montana.
The Valais Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud advises Ulrich: “You shouldn’t let the emotional outbursts and accusations from Italy upset you too much.” Lean back, observe and continue working with concentration, because: “In Italy, life likes to be staged. “It often has something theatrical and operetta-like.” That’s exactly what makes the country livable and lovable, says Ulrich.
Joint investigation team?
After the meeting, both Rome’s Attorney General Lo Voi and the Valais Attorney General Pilloud spoke of a constructive exchange.
The two delegations had agreed on increased coordination, both explained at a joint media conference. Whether this means that a joint investigation team would be formed remained open, as did the question of whether Italy would be given access to the files.
Both demands were heard from Italian circles in the run-up to the meeting. It is questionable whether this is enough for Giorgia Meloni to send her ambassador back to Bern.
(with material from the sda news agency)