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Neutral Switzerland to join EU's "Military Schengen"

Neutral Switzerland to join EU's "Military Schengen"

Switzerland will join the EU's "Military Mobility Project," which aims to ensure the rapid and smooth movement of military personnel, equipment and assets, after member states agreed on Monday evening to send the country an official invitation.

The neutral country's Federal Council decided last August that Switzerland would participate in the EU initiative to cut red tape when mobilizing armies through or between EU member states, whether by rail, road, air or sea - but member states still had to give final approval for the Netherlands, the project's coordinator, to send the official letter of invitation.

Other non-EU countries, such as the United States, Canada, Norway and the United Kingdom, are also part of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) project, which is designed to deepen defense cooperation between member states (except neutral Malta, which does not participate in PESCO) and NATO partners.


The EU Military Mobility Initiative acts as a Schengen for armed forces.

It enables member states' troops to respond more quickly and effectively to crises on the bloc's external borders or beyond, both for EU operations and for deployments in other multilateral environments such as NATO, including at short notice and on a large scale.

The Military Mobility Action Plan (2022-26) also aims to strengthen the readiness and resilience of transport infrastructure such as railways, roads, waterways and airports used for civil and military purposes.

Following the invitation of the member states, Switzerland now only needs to conclude an administrative agreement to become a formal member, and the modalities of cooperation will be defined in a non-binding administrative agreement.

The country also aims to join the Cyber ​​Ranges Federation project, coordinated by Estonia since 2021, to improve the quality of training for the Swiss Armed Forces and deepen their interoperability. /Telegraph/