Alexandre Hay

The majority of his youth was spent in the politically tense pre-war climate of Geneva.

In 1945 Hay went to work for the consular service of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs in Paris.

Then in 1948 he was promoted to Class II Secretary of Legation making him responsible for Swiss economic and financial interests in France.

A year later he became department head for the Zurich branch of the Swiss National Bank.

From 1980 to 1988, chemical weapons were deployed in fighting during the Iran–Iraq War in violation of their commitment under the Geneva Conventions.