Swiss defence spending ‘a joke’, say German politicians

Switzerland wants to raise defence spending to 1% of GDP Keystone

Leading German politicians are putting pressure on Switzerland to further increase defence spending, according to the SonntagsZeitung newspaper.

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The Swiss parliament has already decided to double current defence spending to around CHF4 billion by 2028. Boosting the Swiss military should cost 1% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2032.

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But this does not impress some politicians in Germany – a country that is talking about revising its debt brake to borrow billions of euros for increased defence spending.

Roderich Kiesewetter, a German CDU politician and security expert, labelled Switzerland’s 1% target “ a joke”, called for it to be raised to 3-5% of GDP. “Switzerland must decide where it stands. Neutrality is not an option when it comes to defending our freedom,” he told the SonntagsZeitung.

Switzerland has “always been able to maintain a high degree of neutrality because it knew it was protected militarily by a strong NATO,” said German SPD party defence specialist Falko Drossmann.

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“But the world has changed. Everyone must take more responsibility for our own security,” he added.

There are also voices within Switzerland calling for extra spending. “Switzerland cannot remain a free rider. It must make its contribution to security in Europe,” said Social Democrat senator Franziska Roth.

Several European countries, including Britain, Germany, France and Poland, have highlighted the need for extra defence spending in the wake of recent United States threats to withdraw security guarantees for the continent.

So far, the Swiss government has not explicitly reacted to the latest development in the European defence debate.

Adapted from German by DeepL/mga

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