Swiss parts in Russian weapons: Seco cooperates with companies
Published: Wednesday, Jul 17th 2024, 09:40
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So far, Seco has opened over fifty administrative penalty proceedings for violations of the Russia sanctions. According to its information, it is working closely with companies to prevent components from Switzerland ending up in Russian weapons against Ukraine.
The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco), which is responsible for enforcing the sanctions, informed the Keystone-SDA news agency that 41 of the 56 proceedings opened have been concluded with legally binding effect. 26 ended with discontinuation orders, 14 with penalty notices and one with a penalty order.
Since March 2022, immediately after the start of the Russian war of aggression, around 300 suspected cases of violations of sanctions against Russia and Belarus have been reported to the State Secretariat.
Hong Kong and China as intermediaries
Seco has recently been confronted with investigations by various newspapers according to which parts from the West - including Switzerland - were found in weapons used by Russia against Ukraine. This was the case, for example, with a heavy missile attack on Kiev on July 8.
For Seco, the main problem is that a number of countries producing electronic components - particularly in Asia - do not support the international sanctions. In addition, the majority of such components are not manufactured in the USA, the EU or Switzerland, it said. And exports are not made directly to Russia, but via third countries.
On this point, Seco pointed out that Switzerland has tightened its control mechanisms vis-à-vis Russia's neighboring countries. According to Seco, the majority of companies from which components appeared in Russian weapons did not deliver directly to Russia. Western export companies must pay close attention to ensuring that their products do not reach Russia via intermediate stations, it added.
Distribution companies removed from the supply chain
The components, which are almost exclusively manufactured outside of Switzerland, are supplied by numerous distributors worldwide. Companies, particularly in Hong Kong and China, supplied parts to Russia without the Swiss companies concerned finding out about the transaction, as Seco went on to explain. However, these suppliers are now excluded from the supply chain.
The federal government is working closely with the companies affected. "The effective and complete implementation of sanctions against Russia is a priority for the Federal Council. Seco consistently follows up on indications of violations and uses the instruments of the Embargo Act, such as the duty to provide information, or national and international mutual legal assistance," wrote the State Secretariat.
Federal Public Prosecutor's Office with proceedings
Of the cases dealt with, Seco referred two to the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland. The latter opened criminal proceedings in one case, as it confirmed in March. The second case was referred back to Seco. According to information from Swiss radio and television SRF, the criminal proceedings are directed against a commodities trading company.
At the request of Keystone-SDA, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland did not comment on these proceedings and possible other preliminary investigations or proceedings in connection with violations of the Embargo Act.
©Keystone/SDA
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