A spokesman for the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) said that Germany’s requests were rejected, based on Swiss neutrality and the mandatory rejection criteria of the War Material Act.
SECO did not confirm whether the inquiries related to ammunition used in German Marder armored personnel carriers, which Kyiv had claimed.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz faced heavy criticism for his position on not sending heavy weapons to war-ridden Ukraine, while other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) increased their supplies.
Scholz pointed out that Germany’s military stockpiles of heavy weapons such as tanks and howitzers had been reduced, making it difficult to send them to the battlefield.
According to Swiss arms export and neutrality law, shipping to countries affected by civil war or international conflicts is prohibited.
Weapons sales are subject to an external non-re-export declaration, which prevents Swiss-made weapons from being shipped to another country without prior approval from SECO.
At the end of March, the newspaper NZZ reported that the country’s foreign ministry had asked NATO member Canada to withdraw a request to send weapons from Great Britain to Italy via Swiss airspace.
Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24 after the authorities of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics asked for help to repel Kiev’s aggression.
Recognizing the independence and sovereignty of both territories, Moscow signed treaties of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with their leaders, which included the establishment of diplomatic relations and military assistance.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the purpose of the special military operation is to protect the people of Donbass from abuses and genocide committed by Kyiv over the past eight years and to “demilitarize” Ukraine.
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