Swiss army head concerned by delayed equipment orders

Army Chief Süssli shares concerns about the state of army projects Keystone-SDA

Swiss army chief Thomas Süssli has admitted concerns over delays of the delivery of war materiels that are vital for Switzerland’s defence.

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In an interview with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung newspaper, Süssli said he shared concerns of a parliamentary committee over seven delayed orders, which include military drones from Israel.

“These projects all have the purpose of strengthening the army’s defence capability,” said Süssli.

This strengthening is important because the army’s equipment is currently “insufficient to credibly demonstrate that we are prepared to defend Switzerland’s sovereignty”.

Despite problems with seven orders, most of the 200 or so projects are going well, he said. The reasons for the problems are manifold: the – sometimes underestimated – complexity of the projects, the high requirements and delivery bottlenecks.

How long it will take to set up war logistics, for example, is still unclear. The new airspace surveillance system must be in place by 2029 at the latest. Until then, the risk is acceptable.

Translated from German by DeepL/mga

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