Swiss senate committee greenlights sale of 25 Leopard tanks
The Security Policy Committee of the Swiss senate wants to sell 25 decommissioned Leopard battle tanks of the army to the German firm Rheinmetall.
These tanks have nothing to do with the Ruag tanks stored in Italy, which have been making the headlines lately.
The proposal was approved by 9 votes to 3 with one abstention, as announced on Friday. The army will return these 25 tanks to their German manufacturer Rheinmetall for decommissioning.
The majority of the committee said that this would not prevent the army from meeting its needs. The resale of these tanks to the manufacturer also seems appropriate from a foreign and security policy point of view and it sends a positive signal to Switzerland’s European partners.
+Swiss commission recommends selling 25 tanks back to Germany
A minority felt that the war in Ukraine demonstrated the need to maintain robust defence capabilities. The committee also pointed out that the international market did not allow new systems to be procured quickly when needed.
The House of Representatives had already greenlighted this in June and Swiss Defence Minister Viola Amherd had reassured that these tanks would not be sent to Ukraine. They can however be resold to other European countries.
+Swiss government rejects re-sale of old tanks to Ukraine
Switzerland currently has 134 tanks in service and 96 in storage. The 25 tanks concerned will be taken from the latter. The Swiss People’s Party opposed this proposal.
No replacement
On the other hand, the committee rejected, by 6 votes to 5, another proposal concerning the 71 other Leopard 2 tanks in storage. These should not be reactivated or replaced by a more modern system between now and 2035.
Army budget accepted
The committee also largely accepted the budget for the army. Some CHF1.9 billion ($2.1 billion) have been earmarked for the armaments programme, the property programme and the acquisition of army equipment.
In detail, the 2023 armament programme of CHF725 million will enable the purchase of 24 wheeled grenadier tanks to increase the mobility of the land forces, to the tune of CHF217 million.
Long-range ground-air defence capabilities will be increased. The new Patriot system will be equipped with guided missiles to combat short-range ballistic missiles, for CHF300 million.
A budget of CHF615 million has been earmarked for the procurement of equipment for 2023, and CHF555 million for the building programme of the Federal Department of Defence. The committee also supports the increase in the expenditure ceiling for the years 2021 to 2024. The budget should rise from CHF21.1 billion to CHF21.7 billion.
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