Swiss war material – Rejection of re-export of war material in the Council of States – News

  • The Council of States has rejected a motion by Thierry Burkart (FDP/AG) to amend the War Material Act by 23 votes to 18 with two abstentions.
  • This demanded that a non-re-export declaration can be completely dispensed with for countries with the same values ​​and a comparable export control regime.
  • With that, the deal is done.

Different interpretations of neutrality shaped the first debate on arms re-exports in the Council of States. While some called for more “leadership” from the Federal Council when it came to war material, others said that none of the proposals on the subject were “the yolk of the egg”. So far, six approaches have been launched with six different solutions for weapons transfer.

Burkart: Neutrality is based on acceptance by other countries

Motionary Thierry Burkart (FDP/AG) commented on the accusation that his motion primarily helped the armaments industry. “Yes, I don’t want to deny that at all,” says Burkart. Because: «If you want to wash the bear, you have to accept that the fur will get wet. We can’t have one and not the other.”

If the armaments industry is not to be weakened, a change must be made because various countries no longer want to buy Swiss weapons and ammunition if they are not allowed to pass them on.

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So far, the Federal Council has rejected all requests from states that want to deliver Swiss war material to Ukraine, among other places. This causes irritation among the European neighbors, said Thierry Burkart (right).

KEYSTONE/Peter Klaunze

According to Burkart, other countries understand Switzerland’s neutrality, but not why Switzerland is blocking re-exports. The neutrality is based on the acceptance of other countries – and this is currently disappearing with the non-re-export declaration.

Jositsch: Neutrality has to be endured

SP Councilor Daniel Jositsch questioned Burkart’s statement as to whether the image of Switzerland and its neutrality appealed to the European states. “Do we have to please everyone in this world?” asks Jositsch. That is not the crucial question. “Neutrality is sometimes uncomfortable.” And in a war situation, neutrality must be endured.

The majority of the preliminary advisory commission had recommended a no because they want to implement the issue with a parliamentary initiative. In this way, Parliament can work out an amendment to the law itself.

Switzerland could do without some of the Leopard tanks


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According to the Federal Council, some of the decommissioned Leopard tanks could be dispensed with. He did not give a specific number in his answer to a question from Parliament. But he confirmed that Germany had made a request to acquire such tanks. The Czech Republic should also be interested in Leopard 2 tanks, as Federal Councilor Viola Amherd explained to SRF.

A total of 96 Leopard 2 main battle tanks are stored in Switzerland. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Economics Minister Robert Habeck submitted an application to purchase these tanks on February 23, 2023, according to Defense Minister Viola Amherd’s published response to the National Council’s Question Time.

The Council of States rejected the motion by 23 votes to 18 with two abstentions. So the deal is done.

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