Parliament Retires 25 Leopard Tanks
Published: Tuesday, Sep 26th 2023, 10:00
Mise à jour le : Vendredi, 13 octobre 2023, 14:12
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The Swiss Army can decommission 25 Leopard-2 tanks, provided they are sold back to the German manufacturer. This decision was approved by the National Council in June and the Council of States on Tuesday, with 25 votes in favour, 15 against and 3 abstentions. The German government had requested the Swiss to sell back a portion of the decommissioned tanks to Rheinmetall in February. The Swiss Defence Minister Viola Amherd assured that the tanks would not be sent to Ukraine, but would remain in Germany or other EU or NATO countries to fill gaps in their defence capabilities. A minority of the Security Policy Commission of the Council of States argued that the Swiss Army could not do without the tanks, but the majority argued that the Army's needs would still be met with the decommissioning. The Parliament also agreed to a defence programme worth 275 million francs, which includes the purchase of 24 Piranha IV armoured personnel carriers and the acquisition of guided weapons for the Patriot air defence system. Additionally, the payment framework for the Army was increased by 600 million francs to 21.7 billion francs for the period 2021-2024.
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