Swiss defence minister reaffirms military cooperation with neighbours
Federal Councillor Pfister reaffirms military cooperation with neighbours
Keystone-SDA
Select your language
Generated with artificial intelligence.
Listening: Swiss defence minister reaffirms military cooperation with neighbours
On his first trip abroad in government, Defence Minister Martin Pfister visited the Swiss troops taking part in a major exercise in Austria. In this context, he emphasised the importance of cooperation with neighbouring countries.
This content was published on
3 minutes
Keystone-SDA
Deutsch
de
Bundesrat Pfister bekräftigt militärische Kooperation mit Nachbarn
Original
The Trias troop trial with Swiss, German and Austrian soldiers is necessary to improve the defence readiness of the respective armies, said Pfister in an interview with the Keystone-SDA news agency on Thursday at the training ground in Allentsteig, Austria. “Cooperation between the Swiss Armed Forces and their neighbours is of central importance,” he stated.
The three countries benefit from each other’s expertise, Pfister added. “We must be able to work together in the event of a conflict.”
The Swiss Armed Forces cannot solve many issues autonomously. That is why it is important to practise interoperability.
More
More
Seven weaknesses in ‘Fortress Switzerland’
This content was published on
The Swiss Armed Forces are facing considerable challenges. A look at seven problems that the next defence minister will have to address.
The fact that the first foreign trip of a new government minister is to Austria is a long-standing tradition, said Pfister. The exchange with Switzerland’s neutral neighbour was also fitting in terms of content, as both countries were in the process of developing new security policy strategies.
Austrian Defence Minister Klaudia Tanner said that her country had just adopted the highest defence budget in history. “It is necessary to invest.”
It is important for Switzerland and Austria to increasingly focus their armies on military national defence. “In order to be able to defend our common neutrality, it is also necessary to practise together,” Tanner said.
Exercise overshadowed by accident
Since April 14 and until May 9, members of the Swiss Armed Forces have been training together with units from the Austrian and German armies at the Allentsteig military training area, around 100 kilometres north-west of Vienna. Around a thousand members of the Swiss Armed Forces are completing this refresher course abroad.
The exercise was overshadowed by an accident: during an exercise last Wednesday night, a Swiss soldier was run over by a military vehicle and seriously injured. Pfister wished the 19-year-old a speedy recovery. Such accidents must be avoided, he said. “But when so many people are training in such conditions, you can never completely rule it out.”
According to the defence ministry, the young soldier will be brought to Switzerland as soon as his condition allows. The military tribunal, which is also on site at the foreign training centre, has begun an investigation.
Adapted from German by DeepL/ac
How we work
We select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate them into English. A journalist then briefly reviews the translation for clarity and accuracy before publication. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles. The news stories we select have been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team from news agencies such as Bloomberg or Keystone.
Did you find this explanation helpful? Please fill out the short survey below to help us understand your needs.
External Content
Popular Stories
More
Climate solutions
Switzerland turns train tracks into solar power plants
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Swiss parliament rejects national microchipping scheme for cats
This content was published on
Switzerland should not introduce a nationwide mandatory microchip scheme for cats. On Tuesday, the House of Representatives rejected such an idea by 108 votes to 80.
Sharp rise in reported cyber incidents in Switzerland
This content was published on
The number of reported cyber incidents and online threats in Switzerland rose sharply last year, according to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).
Swiss National Bank ‘ready to consider’ negative interest rates
This content was published on
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) is prepared to lower its key interest rate even further in the face of economic uncertainty, Chair Martin Schlegel said on Tuesday.
Toxic chemicals from car tyres found in fruit and vegetables in Switzerland
This content was published on
Tyre additives are transferred into the food chain, according to a new study in Switzerland. Further research is needed to establish the dangers for human health.
Swiss pensioner in court for feeding neighbour’s cat
This content was published on
A 68-year-old Swiss woman is in court in Zurich on Tuesday, accused of systematically feeding her neighbour's cat "Leo" - a criminal offence in Switzerland - so that the cat no longer wanted to go home.
SWISS flights to Tel Aviv remain suspended until May 11
This content was published on
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) has cancelled all flights to and from the Israeli city of Tel Aviv until May 11 after a missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels landed near the airport.
Ministers discuss Swiss-EU deal with Italy and Hungary
This content was published on
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis held talks on Monday with their respective counterparts from Italy and Hungary.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.