- Swiss government tightens arms export regulations after Swiss-made ammunition ended up in Ukraine.
- Polish company UMO violated Swiss neutrality laws by re-exporting 645,000 rounds of ammunition to Ukraine.
- Switzerland bars further exports to UMO and requires written guarantees that weapons will be used only within the buyer's territory.
- UMO denies breaking any laws, claiming it exported the ammunition "in accordance with Polish law."
- The standoff between Switzerland and Poland is likely to affect international trade and cooperation in the region.
Switzerland has tightened its regulations on arms exports after some 645,000 rounds of Swiss-made ammunition ended up in Ukraine.
For the uninitiated, Switzerland has been rejecting requests for the re-export of Swiss-made ammunition to aid Kyiv since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February 2022. In June, the Swiss Federal Council explained that "such a sale would contravene the War Materiel Act and would result in a shift from Switzerland's policy of neutrality." Under this act, weapons re-exports are not permitted if the recipient country is engaged in an international armed conflict. (Related: Switzerland refuses to send tanks to Ukraine, citing NEUTRALITY policy.)
However, the Swiss government discovered last month that the Polish company UMO violated their neutrality laws.
UMO re-exported approximately 645,000 rounds of Swiss-made small-caliber ammunition to Ukraine despite agreements with Swiss manufacturer SwissP Defense of limited resale to Poland. The revelation sparked intense scrutiny and resulted in the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) barring further exports to UMO.
"The investigation showed that the Swiss manufacturer and the Polish company had signed a reseller agreement stating that the Polish company was entitled to resell the ammunition only in Poland," Fabian Maienfisch, a spokesperson for the SECO wrote in an email to the Associated Press (AP) in November. "For the time being, export requests to the Polish company concerned for general resale are denied, since the risk of diversion to Ukraine is assessed as being too high. However, the Polish company can still act as an intermediary for Polish state entities."
In line with this, the official website of the Swiss parliament announced on Dec. 16 the new regulations that would strengthen guarantees and reduce the risk of unauthorized diversion. Under the revised rules, buyers will be required to provide written guarantees that the weapons will be used exclusively within their territory.
If re-export is necessary, third-party countries must be explicitly listed in the agreement.
UMO denies accusation of violating agreement with SwissP Defense
In November, SwissP Defense, the manufacturer involved in the scandal, said it always complies with regulations but declined to provide further details about its customer relationships.
Similarly, UMO, the Polish company accused of violating the agreement, strongly denied breaking any laws in sending Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine. UMO, which specializes in providing military and police equipment, stated that it procured the ammunition from SwissP Defense in 2023 and subsequently exported it to Ukraine "in accordance with Polish law."
"The information that the Polish company UMO… in any way violated the provisions of generally applicable law by exporting ammunition purchased from the Swiss manufacturer SWISS P Defence AG to Ukraine is untrue," UMO wrote in an email to AP in November.
At the time, UMO still maintained its position despite the controversy. "We are proud of our role in strengthening the defense and freedom of Ukraine," UMO wrote on their official website.
The standoff between Switzerland and Poland over this issue is likely to continue, with potential ramifications for international trade and cooperation in the region, especially since the latter is known as a staunch ally of Ukraine.
MilitaryTech.news has more stories about weapons sent to Ukraine.
Watch this clip from Russia Today about Russian forces capturing several Leopard tanks in Ukraine.
This video is from the HALOROCK channel on Brighteon.com.
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