The Diplomat
The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, assured yesterday that Spain will not be able to send to Ukraine the F-16 aircraft requested by President Volodimir Zelenski, because “it does not have them”. Meanwhile, Switzerland announced yesterday its veto to the shipment of two anti-aircraft guns from Spain to Ukraine on the grounds of the “principle of neutrality”.
The Ukrainian president requested this Thursday in Brussels, during the extraordinary meeting of the European Council, the sending of new armament to Ukraine, including F-16 fighters, to combat Russian forces. The Spanish Air Force does not have this model, nor does the United Kingdom. Zelenski himself requested this week in London to the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, to send F-35 fighters from the Royal Air Force. According to the British press, the Ukrainian president requested fighter-18s from Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez during the latter’s visit to Kyiv.
“Everyone knows that it would not be possible for Spain to send aircraft, because Spain does not have the ones requested by President Zelenzki,” said the Minister of Defense yesterday in Jaen, where she attended the signing ceremony for the start-up of the Technological Center for Development and Experimentation of the Ministry of Defense (CETEDEX). In any case, she assured, “Spain is firmly committed to Ukraine, and as far as arms shipments are concerned, we always act in relation to our allies”.
On the other hand, and as the Minister herself had already announced on January 10 during the VII Conference of Ambassadors, the Swiss Government has vetoed the shipment from Spain to Ukraine of two 35 mm anti-aircraft guns, in spite of the request presented on January 16 by the Spanish Government in this sense.
The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) has made use of its veto right under the legislation which prevents the shipment of Swiss war material to a country at war, according to the Swiss government in a communiqué published by the Europa Press agency. According to the Swiss authorities, Spain’s request was examined according to the same re-export criteria that apply to any Swiss military material, but was rejected in reference to the country’s “principle of neutrality”. “The Swiss Parliament has taken up the issue of re-export and is currently discussing various proposals to adjust the legal framework,” it added.
During the event before the ambassadors (which was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and brought together the 118 ambassadors and 11 permanent representatives of Spain in the world), Robles reported that she had warned Spain’s ambassador in Bern, Celsa Nuño, that Switzerland was vetoing the shipment of certain military material that requires the endorsement of the manufacturing country in order to be re-exported. “The neutrality thing we understand, respect and accept, but for a material we need a certain authorization from Switzerland that it is not giving us at the moment,” Robles lamented.
