Who cares its a industry nobody want obvious in Switzerland and only 0.2% of the total exports. It going down since multiple years and was rhe reason the Swiss sold all the companies over the last 20 years they are now owned by Germans UK and US.
Swiss domestic defense industry won’t recover from ruzzian-Ukraine war without ever being hit with a single bomb.
In general, it’s bad because buyers usually prefer to purchase arms from manufacturers with a solid supply chain, and where R&D sits pretty much beside the assembly line.
Mainly because you not only buy arms, you but complex systems with lots of IP and several mechanisms to protect that. The further you must transport your IP, the more unsecured it gets.
Switzerland will certainly face additional sanctions from other countries. Mainly because by not letting them export ammo to Ukraine, Switzerland actively weakens the defense capability of Ukraine. And therefore actively improves the attack-capability of Russia. And therefore cannot be seen as a neutral agent anymore. We are actively engaged in the war, and we stand on the wrong side.
I think that’s right. Switzerland needs to decide whether a) it’s a neutral, humanitarian country that does not contribute to global conflicts – and that means no arms exports or b) is part of the Western, NATO-allied world where it supports through arms exports democratic countries at war like Ukraine.
The old regime where the Swiss arms industry could just export to whatever repressive hellhole as long as it wasn’t at war (yet) should never come back.
Funny that those burgeoise politicians who never had an issue with delivering weapons to head-chopper diactatorships like Saudi Arabia “because our arms industry needs those deals and otherwise we’ll lose jobs!!” draw the line when it comes to support an European nation from an aggressive war.
Apparently – after all – the money from Russian oligarchs is more important to the money laundering businesses of the burgeoise politicians than the jobs in the arms industry are.
​
*EDIT: Since there seems some confusion amongst those who replied.*
*Yes, the restrictive export law that we have today was a reaction to a referendum proposed by the political center-left. (And that referendum was the consequence of the burgeoise dominated Federal Council permitting exports to shady countries over and over which lead to the situation that Swiss weapons ended up being used in the wars in Yemen and Syria.)*
*However:*
* *The Federal Council is justifying their current policy mainly with “neutrality”, not mainly with the weapons export control law. In fact many politicians believe that the Federal Council could make a decree that allows the passing on to Ukraine, for example based on constitution art 184.3 without even having to touch the export law.*
* *Typically those who were against stricter export laws are now against the possibility of passing on arms to Ukraine. So it’s pretty hypocritical to blame a law for something you don’t want to do anyway.*
Direct Export to Saudi Arabia: no problem
Re Export to Ukraine: big problem
I dont get it.
The US, biggest arms exporter of the world, also has re-export bans
Just stay neutral, we already did WAY TOO MUCH
Everybody thinks neutrality makes us special, lol. Does anyone here truly think we are neutral ? Let alone impartial ? Fk that shit, we’ve sided and pretended we were not for years, the only neutrality we respected is not entering wars, thats pretty much all. Allowing exports, giving humanitarian aid is not siding, Ukraine needs it, Russia doesn’t. Our great neutrality, allowing Uygurs to be put inside camps, our neutrality allowing bullies the likes of Russia to bomb civilians, allowing the worst humanity has to offer to hide in Swizerland. All the while questionnable money is funneled in Switzerland. Is it what you want you all ? Trading our freedom and democratic values for the sake of “neutrality”. At this point we’re all in a collective copium trip.
Israel isn’t delivering weapons to Ukraine either last time I checked but who cares. It’s all about Switzerland not doing “anything”. Humanitarian aid, civilian protection training and $$$ does not seem to count. Edit: BTW Germany and their super old Gepards from the 70s with that super old 35mm ammo can have at it, it’s really not a big issue. They signed contracts and knew full well of the new legal framework before they even asked Oerlikon for the ammo. It’s all German shenanigans because their own army is completely underfunded and broken down.
As I’m pro the industry and pro neutrality, it’s a bit difficult to decide what is right. But I rather be neutral, than have some more money so I think the bans are one of the few right things the Swiss government has decided in this war.
11 comments
Who cares its a industry nobody want obvious in Switzerland and only 0.2% of the total exports. It going down since multiple years and was rhe reason the Swiss sold all the companies over the last 20 years they are now owned by Germans UK and US.
Swiss domestic defense industry won’t recover from ruzzian-Ukraine war without ever being hit with a single bomb.
In general, it’s bad because buyers usually prefer to purchase arms from manufacturers with a solid supply chain, and where R&D sits pretty much beside the assembly line.
Mainly because you not only buy arms, you but complex systems with lots of IP and several mechanisms to protect that. The further you must transport your IP, the more unsecured it gets.
Switzerland will certainly face additional sanctions from other countries. Mainly because by not letting them export ammo to Ukraine, Switzerland actively weakens the defense capability of Ukraine. And therefore actively improves the attack-capability of Russia. And therefore cannot be seen as a neutral agent anymore. We are actively engaged in the war, and we stand on the wrong side.
I think that’s right. Switzerland needs to decide whether a) it’s a neutral, humanitarian country that does not contribute to global conflicts – and that means no arms exports or b) is part of the Western, NATO-allied world where it supports through arms exports democratic countries at war like Ukraine.
The old regime where the Swiss arms industry could just export to whatever repressive hellhole as long as it wasn’t at war (yet) should never come back.
Funny that those burgeoise politicians who never had an issue with delivering weapons to head-chopper diactatorships like Saudi Arabia “because our arms industry needs those deals and otherwise we’ll lose jobs!!” draw the line when it comes to support an European nation from an aggressive war.
Apparently – after all – the money from Russian oligarchs is more important to the money laundering businesses of the burgeoise politicians than the jobs in the arms industry are.
​
*EDIT: Since there seems some confusion amongst those who replied.*
*Yes, the restrictive export law that we have today was a reaction to a referendum proposed by the political center-left. (And that referendum was the consequence of the burgeoise dominated Federal Council permitting exports to shady countries over and over which lead to the situation that Swiss weapons ended up being used in the wars in Yemen and Syria.)*
*However:*
* *The Federal Council is justifying their current policy mainly with “neutrality”, not mainly with the weapons export control law. In fact many politicians believe that the Federal Council could make a decree that allows the passing on to Ukraine, for example based on constitution art 184.3 without even having to touch the export law.*
* *Typically those who were against stricter export laws are now against the possibility of passing on arms to Ukraine. So it’s pretty hypocritical to blame a law for something you don’t want to do anyway.*
Direct Export to Saudi Arabia: no problem
Re Export to Ukraine: big problem
I dont get it.
The US, biggest arms exporter of the world, also has re-export bans
Just stay neutral, we already did WAY TOO MUCH
Everybody thinks neutrality makes us special, lol. Does anyone here truly think we are neutral ? Let alone impartial ? Fk that shit, we’ve sided and pretended we were not for years, the only neutrality we respected is not entering wars, thats pretty much all. Allowing exports, giving humanitarian aid is not siding, Ukraine needs it, Russia doesn’t. Our great neutrality, allowing Uygurs to be put inside camps, our neutrality allowing bullies the likes of Russia to bomb civilians, allowing the worst humanity has to offer to hide in Swizerland. All the while questionnable money is funneled in Switzerland. Is it what you want you all ? Trading our freedom and democratic values for the sake of “neutrality”. At this point we’re all in a collective copium trip.
Israel isn’t delivering weapons to Ukraine either last time I checked but who cares. It’s all about Switzerland not doing “anything”. Humanitarian aid, civilian protection training and $$$ does not seem to count. Edit: BTW Germany and their super old Gepards from the 70s with that super old 35mm ammo can have at it, it’s really not a big issue. They signed contracts and knew full well of the new legal framework before they even asked Oerlikon for the ammo. It’s all German shenanigans because their own army is completely underfunded and broken down.
As I’m pro the industry and pro neutrality, it’s a bit difficult to decide what is right. But I rather be neutral, than have some more money so I think the bans are one of the few right things the Swiss government has decided in this war.