Switzerland blocks amendments on arms re-export to Ukraine

The lower house of the Swiss parliament did not support amendments to the law on military materials. This initiative would have allowed the supply of Swiss-made weapons to Ukraine.

This was reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the Swiss parliament.

The vote in the parliament took place during a meeting between Swiss President Alain Berset and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the summit in Moldova, where they discussed the export of military equipment.

The vote was 98 in favor of blocking arms re-exports and 75 against. The MPs said that the amendments violated neutrality, so they rejected them.

However, the Swiss parliament announced other options for arms transfers and emphasized that "the discussion is ongoing."

As a reminder, Switzerland has been adhering to a policy of neutrality since 1815. Among other things, the country does not allow re-exports, i.e. the transfer of Swiss-made weapons to third countries.

At the beginning of the full-scale war, Switzerland declared its support for Ukraine and provided humanitarian aid. However, Bern refused to provide weapons and refused to transfer ammunition for the Gepard anti-aircraft gun to Germany.

Switzerland was criticized internationally, and in mid-May took a step toward supplying Ukraine with weapons. However, as is known, the amendments to the law on military equipment were blocked.

Author – Anastasiya Glotova, 02/06/2023