German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday "
hope
" for a change in the position of Bern, which refuses at this stage to authorize the re-export of Swiss-made weapons to Ukraine.
"
We know that Ukraine needs support, including arms and ammunition, which is why Germany has submitted several requests to find out what can be done to improve the situation and better take into account the needs Ukraine
", explained the Chancellor during a joint press conference in Berlin with the President of the Swiss Confederation, Alain Berset.
"
We have taken note of the decisions taken so far and are following the very heated debate in Switzerland very closely, and hope that something happens
," added Scholz.
“We cannot be asked to break our own laws”
Although pressed by kyiv and its allies to allow the re-export of Swiss arms and ammunition to Kiev, Bern has so far brushed off requests from Germany, Spain and Denmark.
Various initiatives are underway in Parliament to relax the rules for re-exporting arms, but no decision is expected for several months.
Switzerland applies the sanctions against Moscow, provides "
humanitarian aid
" and stands ready to participate in the reconstruction of Ukraine, argued Mr. Berset.
But, the principle of Swiss "
neutrality
" means that Bern "
does not support any party militarily
", he added.
“
It is a commitment that we have made on several occasions, in our laws and at the international level, and it is also for us a question of credibility
”.
“
We cannot be asked to break our own laws.
We cannot demand that of us
, ”he insisted.
The Swiss president also recalled that his country had frozen the assets of Russian oligarchs to the tune of around 7.5 billion Swiss francs, i.e. "
a significant part of what is blocked on the continent and I think that shows that Switzerland takes this very seriously
,” Berset said.
Last week, the member countries of the G7 had nevertheless asked Switzerland to act more actively against the money of the Russian oligarchs.