Swiss President Considers Sending Weapons to Ukraine Violates ‘Our Basic Principles’

Jan. 26, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)—Switzerland’s President Alain Berset asserted yesterday that, as a neutral state, Switzerland should not allow third countries to re-export of Swiss weapons to Ukraine. His remark came in response to a proposal to lift the ban on re-exporting made by the Swiss parliament’s international commission, that called for amending the country’s laws. The country’s major party, the Swiss People’s Party, part of the four-party government coalition, is against lifting this ban.

“Today, it is not time to change the rules of re-export. Neither is it time to change the rules of neutrality,” Berset said in an interview with the RTS television channel. “On the contrary, it is time to recall our basic principles, to stay committed to them and find a right path for the country in this situation.” Switzerland has “a different role from other states,” he said.

He recalled that trust in Switzerland stems from the fact that the country is a depository of the Geneva conventions and stands for promoting humanitarian law. He further argued that departing from its special role for the sake of weapons export will not influence the situation in Ukraine, saying, “A lot of weapons are being exported to Ukraine, and Switzerland is not playing a decisive role in that.”

However, on Jan. 25, the Swiss government imposed new export controls against Russia on certain goods, “including dual-use goods, goods for military and technological enhancement, or for the development of the defense and security sector, or goods that contribute to the enhancement of Russian industrial capacity.”