Germany ‘not angry’ over Swiss ban on arms re-export to Ukraine

Switzerland also benefits from security provided by its European partners with NATO, says German ambassador Michael Flügger. © Keystone / Christian Beutler

Germany is not angry over Bern’s refusal to allow Berlin to re-export Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine, says the German ambassador to Switzerland.

But Switzerland “also benefits from the security that its neighbours provide with NATO,” Michael Flügger said in an interview published on Friday by newspapers ArcInfo, Le Nouvelliste and La Liberté.

Switzerland has previously rejected appeals from Germany to allow it to re-export Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine, saying such a move would violate its neutrality. On January 11 Spain also said Switzerland was refusing to allow it to re-export war materiel to Ukraine. But pressure has been rising for Bern to review its policies, including at the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum (WEF) it recently hosted in Davos.

“We are only talking about re-exports of ammunition produced in Switzerland and bought by Germany 20 years ago, for anti-aircraft and therefore defensive systems,” ambassador Flügger told the Swiss newspapers. “Nobody was asking Switzerland to deliver arms to Ukraine.”

He also notes that Switzerland is contributing to the reconstruction of Ukraine. “But is it really logical to wait until the infrastructure is destroyed before acting?” he asks. The ambassador warned that if ever Germany had to enter a conflict, it would have “no time to lose in negotiating authorisations from Switzerland for the ammunition it has already bought”.

A Swiss parliamentary committee on Tuesday proposed waiving the controversial re-export ban that prevents Swiss-made ammunition from being re-exported from another country to Ukraine. The recommendation passed with 14 in favour and 11 against and will require approval from parliament.