Switzerland poll: Half of respondents support ammo supplies to Ukraine

About 50% of the Swiss support the transfer of Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine by third countries.

That’s according to Bluewin.ch, referring to an online survey run on behalf of the Tamedia and 20 Minutes outlets, Ukrinform reports.

"Fifty percent of those surveyed want to allow third countries to send Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine," the report says.

According to the outcome of the poll published on Wednesday, 46% of respondents opposed the idea, and another 4% remained undecided.

Younger Swiss nationals tend to be more skeptical than the older generation. While two-thirds of respondents over 65 want to allow the transfer of Swiss arms, 58% of 18- to 34-year-olds oppose a corresponding easing of export restrictions.

According to the survey, 43% of the Swiss also support the idea that Switzerland should transfer decommissioned tanks to other European nations so that they, in turn, could send these tanks to Ukraine. At the same time, 52% of respondents opposed the move.

The poll also showed that 49% of Swiss respondents support the seizure of assets belonging to Russian oligarchs with their subsequent use for the reconstruction of Ukraine. At the same time, 46% of respondents spoke against it.

Overall, the results show that neutrality as a concept remains popular among the Swiss. About 68% of the country's citizens consider it a promising concept for the future.

The survey was run by the Leewas Institute from February 15 to February 17, covering over 27,000 respondents.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, at the end of October 2022, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht asked her Swiss counterpart to allow the re-export to Ukraine of Swiss-made ammunition for Gepard anti-aircraft guns. The latter are mostly used in Ukraine to protect critical infrastructure from Russian strikes.

It was noted that Germany provided Ukraine with an initial package of ammunition in the amount of about 60,000 units, but such ammo is in short supply due to its intensive use against Russian drones and cruise missiles.

However, Switzerland, referring to its neutral status, did not allow Germany to transfer Swiss-made ammunition to Ukraine.