Swiss Army Commander Thomas Sussli called for greater cooperation with NATO. According to him, in the future, in addition to the Air Force and special forces, regular ground units of Switzerland should also participate in joint exercises with the forces of the Alliance.. It is reported by Swissinfo..

The head of the Swiss army (the highest military post in the Swiss Armed Forces in peacetime) presented at one of the enterprises of the military-industrial complex in the city of Thun, canton of Bern, the "

In particular, his statement concerned the issue of cooperation between Switzerland and NATO in the framework of exercises conducted in accordance with Article 5 of the Charter of the Alliance, which contains a provision on mutual assistance in the event of aggression against one of the NATO members.. Thomas Sussli did not rule out the participation of the Swiss Armed Forces in the exercises on the basis of Article 5, justifying this by the importance of Switzerland's understanding of the logic of the operation of the Alliance's operational command at all levels.

In response, representatives of the left (Social Democratic Party SP) and right (Swiss People's Party SVP) criticized such statements by Sussli.

“At some point, NATO will say that it is time for Switzerland to stop sitting in the corner. And then, of course, neutrality will be finished,” said MP Mauro Tuena of the SVP.

In February 2023, the Swiss Federal Council decided to gradually increase total military spending to 21.7 billion francs over the next four years and agreed on the need to intensify cooperation with NATO.

Swiss Defense Minister Viola Amherd, during a recent visit to Brussels, did not raise the issue of Switzerland's participation in the Alliance exercises.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, however, expressed skepticism about Switzerland's desire to conduct more joint exercises..

“Some NATO allies have doubts, especially since Switzerland does not allow them to transfer Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said..

Armed neutrality is one of the main principles of Swiss foreign policy. The country has not participated in any war since 1815..

Switzerland's neutrality means that it will use its armed forces in self-defense to protect its independence and territorial integrity, but not to serve interests beyond self-defence..

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Earlier it was reported that the Upper House of the Swiss Parliament (Council of Cantons) rejected a petition to allow the re-export of Swiss-made weapons for Ukraine.. The President of Switzerland also opposed the supply of weapons to Ukraine..

However, Switzerland has joined some of the EU sanctions against Russia. In particular, the country also approved the marginal price of Russian oil..