Swiss President wants to reconsider ban on arms re-export to Ukraine

Swiss President Viola Amgerd said that she is in favour of revising the ban on the re-export of Swiss-made weapons from other countries to Ukraine.

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Amgerd said that the embargo is harmful to Switzerland's industry and security. As an example, she cited the Netherlands, which refused to buy Swiss weapons because of the re-export ban.

"Personally, I think we have to take a step forward for our industry," she explained.

In addition, she said, the lack of procurement could lead to technological stagnation in the defence industry, which would immediately call into question the country's security capabilities.

She stressed that Switzerland will not directly sell or supply arms to countries at war. However, the president added that Switzerland needs to invest more in security in Europe, and plans to strengthen ties with partners, including NATO.

"Over the past 30 years, Switzerland has not invested enough in defence, and we need to catch up," she said.

It should be noted that this year, most European countries began to refuse to purchase weapons manufactured by Swiss companies. This decision was prompted by Switzerland's ban on arms re-exports to Ukraine, which has caused considerable dissatisfaction among many European users of Swiss weapons.

Germany, which has the closest ties to the defence industry and Swiss-made products of any European country, is the most dissatisfied.

Source: Reuters