Swiss arms re-export ban puts Europe at risk, says French Ambassador

There has been heated debate in parliament over waiving a re-export ban that prevents ammunition from being re-exported from another country to Ukraine. Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

The ambassadors of France and the Netherlands have reiterated calls for Switzerland to ease restrictions on the export of tanks and ammunition to defend European security in an interview in the NZZ am Sonntag.

“If Ukraine loses the war, European security will be at risk,” Frédéric Journès, the French Ambassador to Switzerland, toldExternal link the German-language paper NZZamSonntag. Supplying arms to defend Ukraine helps “protect our freedom”.

+ Switzerland moves closer to waiving ban on Ukraine arms re-export

Dutch Ambassador Hedda Samson echoed these comments saying that she understands the debate over neutrality but that Swiss authorities should explore all possibilities to support Ukraine. Switzerland has welcomed significantly more refugees from Ukraine per capita than France or the Netherlands but Samson said, this doesn’t make the questions about arms exports go away.

The comments come amid heated discussions in Swiss parliament over whether to ease the rules on the sale of weapons to European countries that could be used in the war in Ukraine. Last week, Germany sent a letter to Swiss Defence Minister Viola Amherd asking for Switzerland to sell back decommissioned tanks to replace those being sent to Ukraine. Parliament is expected to come to a decision soon on this as well as on waiving a ban on the re-export of Swiss-made ammunition from another country to Ukraine.

“Nobody is asking Switzerland to deliver arms directly to Ukraine. We understand that this is not compatible with neutrality,” said Journès. “This is about the re-export of Swiss weapons and ammunition that are in the stocks of our European partners. If these are blocked, that is a problem for Europe.”

The ambassadors rejected claims that the requests were merely symbolic – a way for Switzerland to show which side it is on in the war. It is of practical importance as “our stocks [of weapons] are slowly being depleted,” said Samson. 

Framework talks

The ambassadors are optimistic that Switzerland and the EU can resolve their differences after Switzerland unilaterally broke off negotiations with the EU on a framework deal to replace the more than 120 bilateral accords.

+ Talks between EU and Switzerland move forward albeit slowly

The recent agreement between the United Kingdom and the EU on the consequences for Northern Ireland is a “positive signal” for Switzerland, said Journès.

Many of the open questions for the UK are the same for Switzerland, he added. “In this day and age, we should be able to resolve these things,” he said.