Swiss army must maintain current military strength, says government

Swiss soldiers take part in a military exercise in Neuchâtel in western Switzerland, May 4, 2023. © Keystone / Martial Trezzini

The Swiss government says the current strength of Switzerland’s army must not decrease in view of the current geopolitical situation.

On Wednesday, the Federal Council instructed the Federal Department of Defence to present a project to enable it to temporarily increase the maximum strength of the army as prescribed in the law.

The Swiss army currently has 147,000 soldiers in service. But under Swiss law, the regular workforce is set at 100,000, up to a maximum of 140,000. Thanks to a transitional provision, these numbers ​​could be exceeded until the end of 2022.

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But to ensure it conforms with the law, the army has been forced to release certain soldiers who have completed their military training.

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The government believes it is “inappropriate” to reduce the current size of the army given the geopolitical situation. “It is essential to have a sufficiently large number of staff to have the necessary replacements to ensure the capacity to last, particularly in the event of a prolonged engagement,” it said in a statement.

The Group for a Switzerland without an army has criticised the fact that a situation which is contrary to the law has existed for years.

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