Switzerland wants to remain a neutral state, media say
Switzerland refused to accept military and civilian victims of Ukraine for treatment. This was reported by the Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger.
“In mid-June, the [Switzerland] Foreign Ministry wrote in an appeal to other departments that it refused admission [for treatment] for legal and practical reasons,” the publication reported. According to the newspaper, the country received a request from the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Center with a request to accept military and civilian victims of hostilities in Ukraine for treatment back in May. Later, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs dealt with the implementation of this request for three weeks, after which the department refused to fulfill the request.
As an argument, the Swiss Foreign Ministry stated its unwillingness to violate the status of a neutral state in accordance with international law, the newspaper reports. Thus, one of the Geneva Conventions and the Hague Convention of 1907 require guarantees from neutral countries that the military will not be able to take part in hostilities after recovery, the authors explained.
In addition, Switzerland refused to accept civilians for treatment. Deputy Foreign Minister Johannes Matiassy explained: “Currently, many civilians in Ukraine are also taking up arms.”
Since February 24, 2022, a special operation of the Russian Federation has been carried out on the territory of Ukraine to demilitarize the country. Russian President Vladimir Putin noted that its main goal is the liberation of the territories of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. The Russian Defense Ministry reported that the priority of the RF Armed Forces is to exclude unnecessary victims among the civilian population of Ukraine.
Photo: Vadim Akhmetov © URA.RU
