Telegraph | News | Switzerland's Cold War spy story

Switzerland has come under heavy fire, in recent years, for its conduct during World War Two. The national myth of heroic neutrality has given way to more sombre assessments - commissioned by Swiss authorities themselves, to their credit - about collaboration with the Nazis by Swiss firms and banks, and the turning away of Jewish refugees from Swiss borders. Now, national self-flagellation has turned to Switzerland's likely stance during World War Three, had it ever broken out. Apparently the Communist bloc was convinced the Swiss would stay neutral if the Cold War broke out. Far from planning an invasion of the Alpine nation if war broke out with the West, Communist officials planned to send their spies and agents there, as a vital base for espionage on Nato and technology gathering; 1939 to 1945 all over again, in other words. I just stumbled on this fascinating report of a new book by a former Swiss examining magistrate, Peter Veleff, which traces the busy time that East German spies had of it in Switzerland, during the Cold War.