Switzerland is disposing of Rapier anti-aircraft missile systems that could be transferred to Ukraine

This was reported by the Neue Zürcher Zeitung with reference to the Swiss Federal Office for Defence Procurement.

The country has 60 of these air defence systems. The Swiss army purchased the Rapier in the 1980s. In 2007, the army purchased 2,000 modern guided missiles, so Switzerland decommissioned the Rapier at the end of 2022.

Peter Schneider, a military expert and former editor-in-chief of the Swiss military magazine Allgemeine Schweizerische Militaerzeitschrift (ASMZ), says the systems can be used against low-altitude air targets such as drones. The Rapier can also hit fighter jets or helicopters.

In 2012, the systems were used to protect sports venues during the London Olympics.

According to the Vice President of the Swiss Security Policy Commission, the transfer of the systems to Ukraine would be legally possible.

“It is not typical for Switzerland to actively offer decommissioned military systems for sale,” said Kaj-Gunnar Sievert, Spokesman of the Armasuisse, Federal Office for Defence Procurement.