The Swiss Parliament did not support the allocation of $5.5 billion in aid to Ukraine: what is the reason?

The upper house of the Swiss parliament has rejected the allocation of financial assistance to Ukraine in the amount of 5 billion Swiss francs (5.58 billion US dollars). The reason was that the plan violates restrictions on borrowing from a neutral country.

This was reported by Reuters. The funds were to be used to restore Ukraine's infrastructure damaged by Russian shelling.

The Cantonal Council rejected the proposal with 28 votes against, 15 in favor, and two abstentions. According to journalists, this did not come as a surprise, as the idea had been criticized by various political forces in recent weeks. Right-wing nationalist lawmakers, who insist that the country remain strictly neutral, were particularly opposed.

The proposal was to set up a special fund to finance the Swiss army and rebuild Ukraine. It was proposed to allocate 5 billion francs to our country, and 10.1 billion francs (about $11 billion) were planned to be allocated for additional needs of the Swiss armed forces in 2025-2030.

"Lawmakers said the package violated Switzerland's so-called 'debt brake' clause and rejected it two weeks before the Swiss government is to host a high-level summit to help bring peace to Ukraine," the newspaper writes.

The journalists added that Western allies are putting pressure on Switzerland to do more to help Ukraine fight a full-scale Russian invasion.

As OBOZ.UA previously reported, Switzerland will not join the international working group on tracing the assets of Russian oligarchs. The country's parliament decided that it has already cooperated with this body enough and that further expansion of contacts would pose a threat to the country's independence.

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