“I share Alain Berset’s desire to end the bloodshed, but neither his analysis nor the conclusions,” said Aargau National Council and SP party chairman Cédric Wermuth on Monday in the online edition of the ” New Zurich Zeitung”. At the moment there is no perspective for negotiations. “Putin has other goals, he is the only obstacle to peace.”
The Federal Council is “unfortunately not very coherent,” Wermuth said. If he is against ammunition re-exports, he should at least lead the way on sanctions against oligarchs, commodity trade, the haircut for Ukraine and humanitarian aid. “He hides behind neutrality everywhere.” It can be assumed that the party leadership of the SP will communicate this attitude “very clearly” to their federal councilors.
In a newspaper interview last weekend, Berset defended the Swiss government’s position in the war in Ukraine. The Federal Council is therefore strongly against European states being able to pass on Swiss weapons to Ukraine to defend themselves against the Russian attack. Instead, he underlined Switzerland’s commitment to protecting the civilian population.
“War madness in certain circles”
Swiss weapons should not be used in wars, Berset said, calling for the preservation of a “hard core” of neutrality. Switzerland cannot change everything without taking into account the legal basis. He also warned of a pre-World War I mood. “Today I still feel that war frenzy in certain circles. And I’m very concerned about that.”
The statements drew heavy criticism of Berset at home and abroad. Swearing has been removed from all parties with the exception of the SVP. With the statements, Switzerland is aligning itself with Russia in the conflict and would view any attempts to defend Ukraine as belligerent, the chairman of the center party, Gerhard Pfister, told Swiss radio and television SRF.
Former Estonian president Toomas Hendrik Ilves wrote on Twitter that Alain Berset is a name everyone should learn and make synonymous with “descending into utter absurdity” to defend the untenable. (con/sda)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
