Italy-produced ‘Swiss’ weapons ‘active in Ukraine’

Oerlikon's anti-aircraft guns may already be active against Russian planes and drones. Keystone / Ritchie B. Tongo

Air defence systems made in Italy, but produced by a Swiss-based company, are active in Ukraine, according to the SonntagsZeitung newspaper.

Oerlikon anti-aircraft guns form part of the Skynex defence system that is being deployed against Russian aircraft and drones, the newspaper reports.

+ Read more about Swiss neutrality and the arms trade

The report will add further fuel to the ongoing debate within Switzerland on preserving its neutrality by forbidding the export of war materiel to Ukraine.

The German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall took over the Oerlikon weapons factory in Switzerland in 1999. The Rheinmetall Air Defence division is still based in Zurich.

Some of the armaments it produces are manufactured at a factory near to Rome.

It now appears that some of these weapons have been shipped to Ukraine. A Rheinmetall spokesperson told the SonntagZeitung that parts of the Skynex system are made in Italy, but would not confirm if they have been delivered to Ukraine.

However, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Schmihal stated over the Telegram social media this week that the anti-aircraft system had reached the war-torn country. “Such batteries are already in combat use in Ukraine,” he wrote.

Previous attempts to export Italy-produced Oerlikon weapons to countries like Thailand and Egypt were turned down by the Swiss authorities.

But Rheinmetall has apparently found a way around the restrictions.

The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco), the department responsible for monitoring weapons exports, told the newspaper that an article of the War Materiel Act allowed the transfer of ‘know-how’ from Switzerland to some other countries, including Italy.

“The transfer of know-how from Switzerland to Italy can therefore take place without a permit,” said a Seco spokesperson.