President Pascal Couchepin of Switzerland

Says he is ready to meet Gaddafi over son's arrestSwiss president "seriously worried" by Libya rowLibyan protestors carry portraits of Gaddafi (R) and his son Hannibal (L)GENEVA (AFP)Swiss President Pascal Couchepin has said he is ready to meet Libyan leader Muammer Gaddafi in a bid to ease bilateral tensions after Gaddafi's son was arrested in a Geneva hotel.

Hanoi - Swiss President Pascal Couchepin met with Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet Monday, pledging Swiss help for Vietnam in improving education and researching environmental issues.

On Tuesday, Couchepin is to preside over the signing of cooperation agreements between Bach Hoa University of Ho Chi Minh City and the University of Lausanne and between Hanoi University and the University of Geneva.

In 1979 Pascal Couchepin was elected to the Federal Parliament as a representative of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP.

Elected to the Federal Government on 11 March 1998, Pascal Couchepin took over the Federal Department of Economic Affairs on 1 April 1998 and headed that Department until 31 December 2002.

Pascal Couchepin was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2003 and 2008.

Couchepin said the deal was only one part of a wider project to diversify energy sources over the coming years.

Pascal Couchepin was elected President of the Swiss Confederation for 2008.

Pascal Couchepin was known to be seeking a new portfolio, after heading up the economics ministry since 1998.

Couchepin is the current president of Switzerland.

var RTR_ArticleBlurb = " GENEVA, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Switzerland is considering using soldiers to protect Swiss ships from pirates off Somalia, President Pascal Couchepin was quoted as saying on Sunday.

GENEVA, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Switzerland is considering using soldiers to protect Swiss ships from pirates off Somalia, President Pascal Couchepin was quoted as saying on Sunday.

At a press conference on May 23, President Pascal Couchepin said the documents had been shredded to prevent them from falling into terrorists' hands.

SWITZERLAND is ready to deploy military personnel to defend its merchant ships from pirate attacks off the Horn of Africa, Swiss President Pascal Couchepin said in remarks published on Sunday.

Pascal Couchepin is on a visit to Turkey on occasion of the 80th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Switzerland and Turkey.

Swiss Confederation President Pascal Couchepin said on Tuesday that Switzerland considered Turkey a strategic partner, and expressed his hope that the cooperation between the two countries would continue.

Now for ten years, Couchepin took reporters to an island frequented by the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

Pascal Couchepin said that despite the botellones, we shouldnt overreact.