Expert commission outlines future Swiss security policy
Published: Thursday, Aug 29th 2024, 11:40
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More investment in the army, defense cooperation with NATO and a revision of the neutrality policy: this is what a group of experts recommends to the federal government. It formulated a total of one hundred recommendations for a "forward-looking security policy".
On Thursday, the commission set up a year ago by the Department of Defense (DDPS) published its 68-page final report. In it, it makes over one hundred recommendations in seven areas on how a future-oriented security policy could be shaped.
For example, the Commission calls for the army to focus more on its defense capabilities and to increase the military budget to one percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030. It also recommends relaxing the ban on the re-export of Swiss weapons to certain countries.
Neutrality policy should also be fundamentally reconsidered. It should be geared more towards its security policy function and handled more flexibly. A majority of the Commission recommends aligning neutrality policy more closely with the UN Charter and taking greater account of the distinction between aggressor and victim.
Rapprochement with NATO
Internationally, the Commission recommends entering into defense cooperation with NATO and the EU. To this end, the expectations of the country's own defense capabilities as well as the counter-performance should be defined. Military peacebuilding should also be expanded in this context.
With regard to armaments policy, the report states that the Swiss arms industry should be more closely aligned with the threat situation. Furthermore, according to the commission, a concept is needed that clarifies the tasks and interaction of military and civilian defence, promotes the resilience of the economy and administration and raises public awareness of the deteriorating security situation.
It also stated that foreign trade and economic policy should be considered as part of the country's economic supply. A majority of the committee also recommends merging civilian service and civil defense.
Committee was rarely in agreement
The commission was broadly based. It was chaired by Valentin Vogt, the former President of the Swiss Employers' Association. The report was written by political philosopher Katja Gentinetta. Professors of international law and international relations as well as independent experts on security policy also worked on the committee. The six parliamentary groups, different generations and language regions were also represented.
The Commission voted on each of the recommendations individually. In most cases, there was no unanimity. The diversity of these opinions is reflected in the report, it said.
The report is intended to provide impetus for the Security Policy Strategy 2025, on which the State Secretariat for Security Policy (Sepos) has just begun work. The report is also intended to contribute to the public and parliamentary debate.
It was only the third time such a body had been set up after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the outbreak of the Cold War. It was triggered by the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, which fundamentally changed the security situation in Europe.
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