Federal Councilor Amherd: “The price of a nuclear attack would be very high for Russia” Police chase innocent people in French-speaking Switzerland, injuring one person

It’s a short flight. The transfer by Federal Council jet from Belpmoos Airport to the northern Italian military base Cameri near Milan takes only 35 minutes. On board is the head of the defense department, including arms chief Martin Sonderegger and the boss personally, Defense Secretary Viola Amherd. At the invitation of the department, CH Media supervises the delegation. It is Amherd’s first visit to Cameri, where 24 of the 36 new F35 fighter jets are expected to be produced. In mid-September, the federal government signed the purchase contracts for the most expensive purchase in the history of the army: according to official figures, the fighter jets cost 6.035 billion francs.

Shouldn’t you have visited the factory in Cameri before making the purchase decision to get an independent view?
Viola Amherd: No, that wouldn’t have been well received. At best, I would have been accused of getting myself entangled.

You could have visited all manufacturers before making a purchase decision.
This is not common. However, now that the decision has been made, it is important to intensify contacts with the Italian Ministry of Defense and those responsible for the jet production in Cameri. We are now also interested in understanding the technical details of the aircraft’s production and construction. Because the maintenance of the jets will take place later in Switzerland.

The US recently grounded all F35s due to ejection seat issues. Isn’t that worrying?
A series of ejection seat cartridges was defective. Grounding all jets was purely a precautionary measure. That reassures me: the controls are working and breakdowns are openly communicated by the US.

However, the Swiss Federal Court of Auditors also expressed criticism: it doubts whether the agreed price will actually be adhered to.
Our contract with the US government is clear and includes fixed prices. Inflation is included, currency fluctuations are hedged by the federal government.

With so many arguments, a referendum would have been easy to win. Why did you prevent the vote on the initiative against the purchase of American fighter jets anyway?
I did not hinder the vote. The population approved the purchase of new combat aircraft two years ago. The four types, including the American ones, were already known at that time and the voters knew that the elections could also fall on an American plane.

In the spring, however, you wrote in the army message that the federal government wanted to wait for the vote on the initiative before signing it. Why did you change your mind?
The army message was written last year. And when the Federal Council adopted them, there was still no war in Ukraine. Moreover, we did not know that Finland, Germany and Canada all want to buy the F35. We would have had to renegotiate with the US and it would have been uncertain whether we could have extended the offer at all. In addition, the initiative committee needed more time for the collection than it had announced. Ultimately, Parliament decided that the Federal Council should sign as long as the offer was valid.

More than 100,000 citizens have signed the initiative. Isn’t it contempt for direct democracy to simply ignore the referendum?
On the contrary. We have a referendum. In addition, initiatives have no prior effect, otherwise any deal can be blocked by collecting signatures.

Arriving in Cameri, the Secretary General of the Italian Ministry of Defense, Four Star General Luciano Portolano, welcomes the Swiss Federal Councilor. He wears a richly decorated uniform. The red carpet is rolled out on the runway, a trumpeter is serenading, the guard of honor is at attention. After a standing aperitif in the “Tiger House”, the club room of Italian pilots decorated with pictures of fighter jets and tiger heads, the first short meeting is on the program. Amherd indicates that the federal government is interested in integrating Swiss technicians into the production of the jets in Cameri, so that they can gain experience for later maintenance of the machines. General Portolano shows understanding – but points out that the Americans, Lockheed-Martin, must also agree.

With the purchase of the F35, the Swiss Air Force is fully integrated into NATO’s air defense system. Where is the neutrality in that?
We don’t integrate anywhere. We work together in various areas and benefit from each other’s experience with the new aircraft and the technical know-how. Integration means that we commit ourselves to carry out combat missions for other countries in an emergency. Not really.

However, the Swiss arms industry is also closely linked to NATO. This is evident from the case of the domestically produced ammunition for the Gepard tanks, which Germany wants to supply to Ukraine, but which is not possible due to neutrality.
This has nothing to do with our cooperation with NATO. It concerns the export of war material, for which the Economic Department is responsible.

After Amherd’s first conversation with General Portolano, a tour of the production halls is scheduled. A director with a prominent name takes over the management of weapons company “Leonardo”: Marco Zoff, son of the legendary goalkeeper Dino Zoff. Apparently father and son share a passion for flak. The program is of course not being completed for the first time: in the hall where the wings of the F35 are mounted, the explanation is routine. On the wall hangs a banner with the coats of arms of all purchasing countries, from Australia to Norway, and countless signatures. Amherd and the Swiss Armaments Leader are also allowed to leave a signature. Where the journalist is not allowed to be present for reasons of secrecy, two communication experts and a dashing admiral take care of him. Her message: the federal government couldn’t have bought a better plane. And when asked what a plane like the F35 could do in a war like the one in Ukraine, the admiral says: The Russians probably wouldn’t have attacked at all.

Mrs. Amherd, you said earlier that the war in Ukraine changed the initial situation when purchasing the jet fighter. How is that related?
There is no direct link between the purchase of the F35 and the war in Ukraine. But you can see that because of this all European countries are increasing their army budget and buying a lot of such planes. We signed so we wouldn’t lose our contracted production window.

What other direct effects does the war in Ukraine have on the security situation in Switzerland?
There is currently no risk of being attacked with conventional weapons in this context.

And the risk of nuclear war?
There is a risk of a nuclear incident in Ukraine, whether accidental or targeted. However, our specialists do not consider the chance of such an event to be high at the moment.

Why do you think that?
They analyze the course of the war so far. Another criterion is how high the price is for Russia itself – that would be very high.

But even your specialists cannot see inside Vladimir Putin’s head. How is Switzerland prepared for nuclear war?
Federal and military intelligence services cover the war in Ukraine 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Federal Office for Civil Protection is constantly updating the overall picture of the situation. This always includes the scenario of a nuclear weapons event. With the National Emergency Center we have the infrastructure to see what consequences such an event in Ukraine would have for Switzerland and to warn the population. We have calculations of what it means to us, depending on the weather, if a nuclear weapon is detonated in Ukraine. These are scenarios you can prepare for. However, due to the distance between Switzerland and Ukraine, hardly any health effects are expected for the Swiss population.

What would happen first?
You could say roughly – but not on the hour – when a nuclear cloud would arrive here in Switzerland. Depending on the prevailing weather conditions and the severity of the radioactive contamination – for example in the event of a serious accident at a Ukrainian nuclear power plant – certain measures such as harvesting or grazing bans should be taken in Switzerland. Mechanisms similar to those that would be used to sound the alarm in an accident at a nuclear power plant in Switzerland. The correct information from the population is important, we are prepared for that. The cantons and municipalities would then allocate shelter to the residents.

Amherd conducted the interview with CH Media after the tour in a conference room at the military base. The Swiss Alps can be seen in the distance. Amherd is satisfied with the visit: she was once again made plausible that nothing could change the price of the plane. Although she has not become an expert on fighter jets, she has learned a lot. “The F35s aren’t just fighter jets, they’re flying computers.”

You are not only Minister of Defense, but also Minister of Sports. The World Cup in Qatar is about to start, in Advent. Are you happy?
It is unknown. I usually go skiing in Advent. But I am looking forward to the matches of the Swiss team. It is a very good team that can achieve something.

Qatar has been criticized for human rights violations, it is not a democratic country, hundreds if not more than a thousand workers have died building the stadiums. Shouldn’t you boycott the World Cup as a protest and stay away as a government?
The Confederation is committed to upholding human rights on all occasions. It is better to talk about difficult topics than to stay away.

Are you still traveling to Qatar as the Swiss national team makes progress?
It is not the intention.

Not even if Switzerland makes it to the final?
I’ve decided not to go. I like to keep my fingers crossed for the team from here. (aargauerzeitung.ch)