The Swiss Army has 134 Leopard 2 tanks in service.

There is also a hidden reserve.

This is well secured in a warehouse in eastern Switzerland: 96 Leopard 2s are mothballed there, although the steel giants are also moved regularly.

No one would have cared if Russia hadn't invaded Ukraine.

But after the raid, in spring 2022, Poland showed interest in the decommissioned tanks.

After the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine, they want to increase their own stocks, it was said in Warsaw.

The Swiss government refused to pass on the tanks.

The reason: The leopards would first have to be officially decommissioned.

And for that you need a resolution from Parliament.

John Knight

Correspondent for politics and economy in Switzerland.

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But now there is a recent push from Parliament aimed at clearing the way for Leopard shipments.

The countries that could benefit most from this are those that pass their “Leos” on to Ukraine and, as a result, create gaps in their own armies.

The Swiss FDP politician Maja Riniker launched the initiative in the security policy committee of the large chamber of parliament (National Council).

“We should decommission some of our obsolete Leopard tanks.

If these were sold to countries that can restore their defense capability themselves, I would welcome that," said Riniker in an interview with the FAZ. For reasons of neutrality, however, these tanks should not be used in the war in Ukraine.

In other words, under no circumstances should buyers pass on the tanks supplied to Ukraine.

Chances of success not bad

This requirement is reminiscent of the difficulties with Swiss-produced ammunition for the Gepard tank.

Bern refused the German government to pass on these cartridges to the Ukraine, citing the law of neutrality and the War Material Act as justification.

Accordingly, no Swiss war material may be exported or even forwarded to countries that are involved in an international armed conflict.

At the first attempt, Riniker's application to the Commission for the transfer of decommissioned Leopard tanks failed.

But she sees a good chance of getting a majority at the second attempt.

Such is the prerequisite for a vote in Parliament.

The party "Die Mitte", which often tips the scales in votes, has apparently only been bothered by Riniker's idea of ​​selling the discarded tanks for the symbolic price of one franc, so that Switzerland does not also benefit financially from the war situation.

Riniker now wants to make adjustments and therefore believes it is quite possible that the National Council will then grant approval in June after a majority in the Security Policy Commission.

After that, it would still need the approval of the Council of States.

In fact, the chances of success are not bad simply because the Social Democratic Party (SP) has changed its position on arms deliveries under growing public pressure.

Last week she agreed to another request in the Security Policy Commission.

This is intended to pave the way for other countries to allow war material produced in Switzerland to be passed on to Ukraine under certain conditions.

"The majority of the Commission is of the opinion that Switzerland must make its contribution to European security and accordingly support Ukraine more," the committee said.

Roderich Kiesewetter (CDU), member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Bundestag, approves of the advances.

These indicated a rethink in Swiss politics and the population.

"Being neutral doesn't mean turning a blind eye to attacks that violate international law," Kiesewetter told the FAZ. With tanks from Switzerland, the stocks of countries like Finland or Greece could be replenished more quickly, especially since the capacities of the armaments industry are very limited.

Germany could take a leading role here and mediate between Bern and other capitals to enable rapid delivery.