Swiss Federal Council shoots down Dutch plan to supply Leopard tanks to Ukraine

The Swiss Federal Council has rejected a request by Swiss defense company Ruag to engage in the trade of 96 Leopard 1 A5 tanks which would have been delivered to the Ukrainian military. Had the Council approved the request, it would have been possible for the Netherlands and other countries to move ahead with their plans to supply the tanks to Ukraine.

The Council said that approving the request contravenes Switzerland’s “policy of neutrality and its reliability as a constitutional state.” The country’s current rules don’t allow for weapons manufactured in Switzerland to be delivered to countries at war or in an armed conflict.

The used tanks are currently located in Italy. They were slated to be sent to Germany for repairs, where they would then be re-exported to Ukraine.

The Netherlands, along with Germany and Denmark, wanted to provide about a hundred Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine at the start. The tanks could be used either to fight the Russian invasion, or be part of a counterattack. They are an older model compared to the more advanced Leopard 2 tanks.

The Dutch planned to buy the 96 Leopard 1A5 tanks from Ruag once they were modernized, the Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger previously wrote.