The head of the Swiss Armed Forces calls for a debate on security in Switzerland
Keystone-SDA
Swiss army chief Benedikt Roos said that war is stimulating innovation and that Swiss made military drones are in the pipeline.
When it comes to the challenges facing security policy, Roos emphasised the growing importance of new technologies. Drones, in particular, are evolving rapidly. “War is a massive stimulus for innovation,” he said in an interview with the Schweiz am Wochenende newspaper.
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Switzerland must therefore equip itself with systems that can be tested and perfected. New technologies are being integrated all the time. The army and Armasuisse are working with the federal technology institutes ETH Zurich and EPFL in Lausanne, as well as start-ups to develop their own solutions for attack and defence drones.
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Switzerland’s drone dilemma
According to the head of the armed forces, the first prototypes should see the light of day in the near future, before being tested. “Our aim is to launch industrial production in 2027,” he said.
Winning over the population
Roos also called for a broader social debate on security. “We won’t succeed in sparking such a debate with brochures,” he said.
He wants to build support for the Swiss army by replicating the success of peace marches. “A march for security, perhaps,” said Roos. As a federal employee, Roos cannot organise demonstrations himself. However, such initiatives could come from associations in different fields, he suggested.
Adapted from French by AI/ac
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