Weapons for Ukraine: these ideas are discussed in parliament Hundreds of dead dolphins on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean: now politicians are reacting

There is a heated debate in Switzerland and abroad: should Switzerland allow weapons to be passed on to Ukraine? Or should she sell her decommissioned Leopard tanks? Opinions differ even within the parties. We’ve summarized the two big questions and their key talking points.

Sell ​​leopard tanks?

The Swiss army has stored 96 Leopard tanks in a hall in eastern Switzerland. The federal government could sell these tanks to those countries that sold tanks to Ukraine and now have gaps in their arsenal: FDP national councilor Maja Riniker raised this in the Security Policy Commission. “If these countries want to replenish their stocks with Swiss material, we have to lend a hand,” she told the “NZZ am Sonntag”.

Riniker’s idea was rejected by the committee. But she wants to come back to it in the spring with a new variant: the tanks will be officially taken out of use. Under this condition, according to a report by Radio SRF, they could be sold back to their original country of origin, ie Germany, without any conditions. Germany was able to resell the tanks. MPs from the SP, GLP and Mitte expressed interest in this maneuver.

On Thursday, however, FDP president Thierry Burkart spoke out on this issue – and whistled back to his party colleague. Riniker’s suggestion did not agree with him. He dismisses it: “A sale at this point would be a rush job and would greatly limit the army’s planning,” he said in an interview with CH Media. “We first have to decide politically what capabilities the army should have in the future.” Only then can it be determined whether Switzerland still needs the tanks.

According to Burkart, experience in Ukraine shows that tanks “still play an important role in warfare”. The Swiss Army units are currently not equipped with the necessary number of tanks, “therefore a sale would reduce even the current capabilities”.

Burkart has another caveat: “If the supply goes to a country to replace the tanks it will hand over or has already handed over to Ukraine, then I think it’s a ring swap. That is excluded under the neutrality law.” According to “Blick”, officers of the armored forces and the SVP are also against the sale of the tanks in principle.

pass on war material?

There are now three proposals in parliament that aim to amend the War Material Act (KMG) in various ways to allow other countries to supply Swiss war material to Ukraine. What are they striving for and what are the problems?

The FDP and parts of the SVP want to save the arms industry

FDP member of the Bundestag Thierry Burkart filed a motion last summer to allow some countries to pass on their weapons without permission from the Bundesrat. They would be countries “that are committed to our values” and that have a similar export regime. The list of these countries is included in the National Ordinance on War Material. In addition to our neighboring countries, these include Sweden, the US and Hungary.

Burkart’s proposal will be discussed on Friday in the Security Policy Committee of the Council of States. At this meeting, SVP councilor Werner Salzmann wants to add two motions to Burkart’s proposal, as he recently announced.

First, he wants to introduce a deadline: Swiss war material may only be passed on five years after purchase. Secondly, he wants the blocked ammunition and tanks to be released retroactively, so that already purchased war material can also be delivered to Ukraine. But Werner Salzmann is not interested in helping Ukraine. He wants to save the Swiss arms industry, in the interest of the army.

The advance of Salzmann and the FDP motion does not please everyone in the SVP, for example because of concerns about neutrality. Group chairman Thomas Aeschi believes that Swiss weapons should not reach Ukraine directly or indirectly. Christoph Blocher also thinks the project is in conflict with neutrality, he tells SRF.

SP wants to be guided by international law

The SP has submitted a motion as a counter-proposal to the FDP initiative. It does not want to fundamentally weaken the War Materials Act. It tries to find a compromise between strict war material laws and pragmatic aid to attacked countries, based on international law.

According to the SP motion, the Federal Council should be able to approve requests for transfers from other countries if the UN Security Council or two-thirds of the UN General Assembly determines that a country has attacked another country in violation of international law. For example, the Federal Council should also allow Germany to pass the 12,000 rounds for the Cheetah tanks.

The center wants to make a temporary exception for Ukraine

Another suggestion, which has received little attention so far, comes from the center. She wants to write a temporary exemption in the War Materials Act. The transfer of weapons should be allowed if a country supplies war material to Ukraine. If everything goes according to plan, this regulation should enter into force on 1 May 2023 and apply until the end of 2025.

The Greens are calling for responsibility and civilian help

The Greens reject all three approaches in principle. As Green National Council and security politician Marionna Schlatter told SRF “Rundschau”, the arms debate distracts from what Switzerland could do for Ukraine without compromising neutrality. She believes the federal government can do more with civilian aid and should take responsibility for the money of the oligarchs and Zug’s commodity trading center. (aargauerzeitung.ch)