Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba thanked the move to unblock the re-export of Swiss weapons.
The Swiss Senate (the upper house of parliament) wants to allow other countries to transfer military equipment they have bought from it. This was reported by the press service of the country’s government.
The body approved the corresponding amendment, 22 deputies voted in favor, 14 voted against, and four abstained.
“The Council of Cantons wants to allow other countries to transfer military equipment purchased in Switzerland under certain conditions. The Council adopted a relevant parliamentary initiative from the Commission for Security Policy. The a legislative draft based on another initiative is already under development,” the statement said.
For countries purchasing Swiss military materials, the re-export ban may be limited to five years. The condition is that the destination country is not involved in a conflict and does not seriously violate human rights and does not exercise its right of self-defense.
According to the text of the initiative, it will apply to countries “given Swiss values”, such as Germany, Italy, the United States or Hungary. The change in law also won’t take effect until around 2025 due to procedures.
The decision on the re-export of arms is not yet final. The initiative was passed to the Security Policy Commission of the National Council (SIK-N), which refused in February.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba on Twitter thanked the upper house of the Swiss Parliament for an important step towards unblocking the re-export of Swiss arms.
“We look forward to the next steps. I thank Switzerland for its solidarity with Ukraine, adherence to neutrality,” he wrote.
As you know, Switzerland’s neutrality is one of the main principles of the country’s foreign policy, which declares that it has no right to participate in armed or political conflicts between other states.
Earlier, representatives of the Swiss Parliament submitted five proposals regarding the organization of the procedure for the re-export of Swiss arms and ammunition.
Source: korrespondent
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