Re-export of weapons to country at war banned by Swiss law: UN envoy

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
1 May 2023 23:31

Switzerland's envoy to the UN says Bern will not change its long-standing policy banning the reexport of weapons to a country at war despite acknowledging that Ukrainian soldiers need ammunition.

Pascale Baeriswyl speaking at a news conference (UN Women)

Swiss Ambassador to the UN Pascale Baeriswyl affirmed, on Monday, that Switzerland will not allow its weapons to be reexported to Ukraine since its national legislation prevents arms transfer to a country at war.

"When it comes to re-export of weapons, it’s not even a matter of neutrality at the moment. We have a law on exportation of weapons and weapons material and without breaking that law, at the moment it would not be possible to reexport those weapons," Baeriswyl said during a press conference.

The position on arming Ukraine will not change as long as the nation's parliament does not take steps to modify the law, the Ambassador continued.

However, Baeriswyl highlighted that Switzerland recognized that Ukrainian soldiers need ammunition.

"The question is, can we maybe make other contributions?" she continued, emphasizing Switzerland’s role as a host for talks on the Black Sea Grain Initiative in Geneva.

It is worth noting that Russia rejected Switzerland's offer to host talks with Ukraine back in February. At the time, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said as quoted by Sputnik that Switzerland has lost its neutral status and is not able to serve as a platform for Russia-Ukraine negotiations.

"We note that Switzerland, by joining the illegal unilateral anti-Russia sanctions, imposed by the West, in our understanding, is no longer a neutral state and cannot perform a mediating role in the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, including the provision of its own platform," Zakharova said.