Armasuisse chief Urs Loher.
Keystone-SDA
The Federal Office for Defence Procurement (Armasuisse) plans to purchase defence equipment directly from American manufacturers in future, rather than through the US government.
“That is one of the key lessons learnt from the F-35 purchase,” said Armasuisse chief Urs Loher in an interview on Wednesday.
But it remains to be seen whether such direct purchases are possible. This would require the go-ahead from the US authorities, Loher told the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ).
More
More
Swiss government accepts it could have handled F-35 procurement better
He believes this might be possible for the Patriot air defence system.
“As this is a system that has been tried and tested for years, selected components are certainly available directly from the manufacturer,” said Loher. A direct purchase of state-of-the-art fighter aircraft such as the F-35 is, however, out of the question, he said.
‘Significant pitfalls’ of US scheme
Armasuisse typically handles procurements from the US via the US government’s “Foreign Military Sales” (FMS) programme. This allows the US government to retain control over which countries gain access to cutting-edge military technology, said Loher. The government also benefits from economies of scale, enabling it to purchase at lower costs itself.
More
More
Renewed controversy in Switzerland over US fighter jets – explained
At first glance, the government programme appears to be an “all-inclusive, worry-free package”. It spares one “lengthy negotiations with defence giants”, said Loher.
But he says Switzerland’s procurement of the F-35 fighter jets from the US has revealed “significant pitfalls”. For instance, there is no jurisdiction in the event of disputes, such as over a supposed fixed price. Also, buyers are dependent on US priorities, and in the event of delayed deliveries, contractual penalties are generally not possible.
Partial refund of Patriot advance payments
Armasuisse has experienced delivery delays and revised priorities in the delivery of the US-made Patriot system. Delivery is currently delayed by five to seven years. The federal office has therefore evaluated a second system, and a final decision is with the Federal Council, said Loher.
More
More
Swiss procurement of second missile defence system faces delays
Switzerland has also slipped down Washington’s list of priorities. The US intends to supply Germany with Patriot systems that were originally planned for Switzerland.
“We’ll come away empty-handed for the time being, but at least we’ll get some – if not all – of the advance payments back,” said Loher. To date, these have amounted to just over CHF1 billion. However, it is also unclear when this partial repayment will take place.
Join the debate:
+ How we produce news in English
Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist.
