The National Council’s Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC-N) plans to provide at least ₣5 billion ($5,4 billion) in aid to Ukraine, as reported by a multilingual news and information platform SWI swissinfo.ch. The financial support will be used for humanitarian assistance, protection of civilians, demining, peacebuilding, and civilian infrastructure restoration.
According to the FAC-N’s decision, the Federal Council was instructed to present a plan to assist Ukraine. The majority of parliamentarians agreed that Ukraine requires substantial financial support.
In addition, the FAC-N discussed Switzerland’s participation in international forums and the geopolitical implications of the current visit of the Chinese leader to Russia.
Late in February, the Swiss government requested that the Swiss parliament approve allocating an additional ₣140 million ($152 million) in humanitarian aid to Ukraine and Moldova.
Most of the proposed funds, ₣114 million (nearly $124 million), are earmarked for Ukraine. They are intended to cover school shelters, hospital, and energy infrastructure repairs and small loans to small agricultural businesses.
Previously, neutral Switzerland has joined the EU sanctions against Russia, which include restrictions on 1,300 individuals and a freeze on assets worth ₣7,5 billion (nearly $8,1 billion). Using its neutrality policy, Bern also prevented the export of Swiss-made weapons to Kyiv by Germany, Denmark, and Spain.
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