General Thomas Süssli, commander of the Swiss army. Photo: Stefan Wermuth / AFP
Switzerland may send its troops to participate in a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine if there is a request and the government agrees, Swiss Armed Forces Chief Thomas Suessli said on Sunday. According to him, the country is ready to send up to 200 soldiers for a period of 9 to 12 months. However, according to Süssli, this issue will be resolved at the level of the government and parliament in the event of an official request, Reuters reports .
For now, the discussion of sending peacekeepers is only hypothetical, as the situation between Russia and Ukraine remains uncertain. The Swiss officer clarified that there is currently no peace treaty, and the United Nations has not received any request for peacekeepers for Ukraine.
Switzerland, which remains neutral, is already involved in several international peacekeeping missions, including in Kosovo, where Swiss soldiers are working with NATO forces as part of the KFOR mission.
This statement was particularly important against the backdrop of Europe’s diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine, which continues after Russia’s large-scale invasion in 2022.
