The equation is simple: armaments against a fall in customs tasks. Swiss Defense Minister Martin Pfister said Sunday that he was “open” to the idea of placing new arms orders to the United States in an attempt to reduce exorbitant customs tasks imposed by Washington. Bern seeks to initiate new discussions with the United States, after a last -minute mission in the US capital could not avoid the application of a customs right of 39%, described as “catastrophe scenario” by the Swiss companies.
The president of the United States, Donald Trump, took Switzerland by announcing that this rich alpine country would be achieved by customs duties among the highest ones imposed in the world and that they entered into force on Thursday, August 7.
These customs tasks endanger entire sectors of the Swiss economy, highly focused on exports, including watchmaking and industrial machines, but also chocolate and cheese. The Swiss companies fear that their competitors in other rich economies benefit from an advantage, the European Union and Japan negotiated a customs right of 15% and Great Britain obtained a rate of only 10%.
Confirmation of the F-35 contract
Switzerland has argued that the United States benefits from an important commercial surplus in the field of services and that most American industrial products enter Switzerland without customs duties. Martin Pfister emphasized that the Government had decided not to question the current Swiss contract about the purchase of 36 new Lockheed Martin F-35a combat aircraft. “It remains to solve the fixed price issue,” he added.
While the president of the Swiss Confederation, Karin Keller-Sutter, went to Washington to achieve an agreement on customs duties, in vain, the general director of Armamento Urs Loher was “on a work visit” at the same time at the F-35 production site in Forth Worth, in Texas. He met with representatives of the manufacturer Lockheed Martin, “for a professional exchange,” said Armasuisse, the federal armament office.
Switzerland and the United States discuss the final price of the F-35A purchased to replace a Hornet F/A-18 aging fleet. The American Security and Defense Cooperation Agency wants Switzerland to support additional costs, but Bern says he will assume the agreed price, just over 6 billion Swiss francs (6.4 billion euros). The F-35A fighting plane, already used by the American Air Force and several European countries, was chosen in June 2021 instead of the Eurofighter, Super Hornet F/A-18 of Boeing and the Dassault Aviation Rafale.
Deliveries of 5 Extravagant Patriot Antimisile Defense Systems
Switzerland also ordered five Patriot Antimisile Defense systems in 2022, which initially should be delivered between 2026 and 2028. However, after Washington’s announcement, who finally decided to provide Patriot to the Ukraine-VIA contracts made by other European countries delivered to Switzerland undergo an unknown limit line.
“It is currently impossible to determine the duration of delays and estimate if there will be other repercussions for Switzerland,” said the Federal Defense Department, population protection and sports in July, after being informed of the US decision.
Source: BFM TV
