Switzerland may abandon its neutrality in the issue of arms supplies to Ukraine due to increasing pressure on the country from the European Union (EU). This was reported by Reuters on Tuesday, February 7.
EU allies want Bern to ease the ban on arms re-exports. Currently, buyers of Swiss weapons cannot legally re-export them. There is also a separate embargo on arms sales to Ukraine and Russia, the article recalls.
Swiss parliamentarians are divided on this issue.
“We want to be neutral, but we are part of the Western world,” said Thierry Burkarta, leader of the centre-right FDP party.
It is noted that he put forward a proposal to the government of the country to allow the re-export of weapons to countries “with the same democratic values as Switzerland.”
“We should not have a veto to prevent others from helping Ukraine.” “If we do this, we will support Russia, which is not a neutral position,” Burkart said.
The article also presents the results of a sociological survey regarding the permission to re-export weapons to Ukraine. It is noted that more than half (55%) of voters are also in favour of allowing the re-export of weapons to Kyiv.
At the same time, the MP from the Greens, Marionne Schlatter, said that allowing the supply of weapons to Kyiv could lead to a “slippery slope” and the abolition of all restrictions, which is incompatible with the neutrality of Switzerland.
A similar opinion is expressed by MP David Zuberbühler from the Swiss People’s Party.
“Allowing the transfer of weapons to a country involved in an armed conflict destroys the foundations of peace and prosperity in our country,” Zuberbühler said.
At the same time, a member of this party, Werner Salzmann, disagrees with Zuberbühler and is concerned about the damage to the Swiss defence industry, which also supports a revision of the re-export law.
Earlier, on February 2, the press service of the Swiss Ministry of Defense stated that the country had 96 Leopard 2 tanks in stock but that no country had yet asked her to purchase equipment. The agency promised that if a request is submitted from any country, Switzerland will consider it. They also noted that the sale of tanks would require a federal act of parliament.
The day before, the Swiss Foreign Ministry released its 2022 foreign policy report. In it, in particular, it is said that Switzerland will reconsider its relations with Russia. The document repeatedly states that Switzerland condemns Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine and also emphasises that the country has joined almost all anti-Russian sanctions imposed by the European Union (EU).
Commenting on this message, Dmitry Belik, a member of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, noted that Switzerland had not passed the strength test, allowing itself to be drawn into political squabbles. Belik added that it would be better for Switzerland to continue to remain a neutral country, but it is “taking a different path.”
