Switzerland’s federal government has approved on 28 May the sale of 71 Leopard 1 battle tanks by defense contractor Ruag MRO to Germany, while explicitly prohibiting their export to Ukraine, in line with Swiss neutrality laws. This was reported by SWI swissinfo.ch.

In 2023, Switzerland’s state-owned arms manufacturer Ruag sought to sell 96 Leopard 1 tanks to the German arms company Rheinmetall for eventual use in Ukraine. The tanks, acquired from the Italian Ministry of Defense in 2016, were originally purchased for resale or as a source of spare parts. They are currently stored in Italy.

However, the Swiss government blocked a proposed sale the same year of the tanks to Germany due to concerns they could be transferred to Ukraine. Swiss law prohibits the export of war matériel to countries involved in armed conflicts.

Following that decision, Ruag MRO submitted an application to the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) for a license to carry out the sale. However, according to the federal government, no license is necessary in this case. Germany is listed among countries to which military matériel can be sold without requiring special authorization.

Despite the green light for the transaction with Germany, the tanks “may expressly not be sold to Ukraine,” the report noted.

The EU’s move to reinstate tariff quotas on Ukrainian agricultural exports from 6 June 2025 has drawn sharp criticism from Ukraine’s Agriculture Minister Vitalii Koval, who warned the decision could cost the country between €2.8 billion and €3.5 billion in 2025 alone and undermine efforts to plug the country into the bloc’s single market, Euroactiv reports.

The reintroduction of pre-2022 trade restrictions comes after EU member states, particularly those with large farming sectors, pushed for the change. The move cancels the full trade liberalization granted to Ukraine after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

Minister warns of “moral losses” and economic harm

Speaking at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) in Brussels on Monday, Koval described the EU’s decision not only as an economic setback but a blow to public morale in Ukraine.

“What about the moral losses? This is not calculated in billions, but millions of Ukrainian citizens supporting integration into the EU,” he said.

Koval noted that agriculture has become Ukraine’s key economic pillar following the devastation of its other major sectors, including chemicals and steel. With farming now contributing 17% of Ukraine’s GDP, he emphasized the weight of the EU’s decision on the country’s overall recovery.

Poland welcomes decision

Poland’s Agriculture Minister Czesław Siekierski celebrated the rollback of liberalized trade with Ukraine, calling it a political win ahead of national elections scheduled for Sunday. Speaking on the sidelines of the AGRIFISH meeting, Siekierski said the move would help address the concerns of Polish farmers, who have been protesting over Ukrainian imports in recent years.

Future trade framework in the works

Koval said Ukraine’s goal remains to develop a long-term trade framework with the EU by the end of July. He framed the Monday visit to Brussels as an effort to counter negative narratives about Ukrainian exports, saying his job was to confront “myths” about disruptions caused by Ukraine’s products.

On 26 May, German Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil said there is “no new agreement” on lifting range restrictions for German-supplied weapons to Ukraine, directly contradicting a statement made earlier the same day by Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

According to German broadcaster NTV, Klingbeil, a member of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), made the comment in response to a question at a press conference in Berlin, saying:

“On the issue of range, let me just say, there is no new agreement that goes beyond what the previous government did.”

The SPD is also the party of former Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who throuout his time in office feared “escalation” with Russia, consistently refused to supply Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, and was cautious about the use of Western weapons against Russian territory.

NTV notes that Merz’s move does not appear to have been coordinated with Vice Chancellor Klingbeil, raising uncertainty over whether his statements reflect an actual policy change or merely reference the use of Western missiles against Russian territory that has been occurring since last fall.

Merz claims Ukraine can now strike Russia with Western arms

NTV reported that Klingbeil’s remark followed a statement by Chancellor Merz at the WDR Europaforum 2025 in Berlin, where Merz declared that there were “no longer any range restrictions” for weapons delivered to Ukraine — neither from Germany, nor from France, the United Kingdom, nor the United States.

Later that afternoon, Merz posted on X:

“We will do everything in our power to continue supporting Ukraine. This also means no more range restrictions on the weapons we deliver. Ukraine can now also defend itself by striking military positions in Russia.”

According to NTV, Merz also claimed that the policy change was part of discussions held with French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk during their joint visit to Kyiv two weeks earlier. He said:

 “This means that Ukraine can now also defend itself by attacking military positions in Russia, for example,” said Merz. Until recently, Ukraine had not been able to do this, or only in a few exceptional cases, but “now it can.”

NTV noted that while Merz had previously spoken in favor of sending Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, he made no comment on that system during his latest statement.

The current German government, led by Merz, has stated it will no longer provide specific information on what weapons are being supplied to Ukraine.

Russian threats

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov criticized Merz’s statement. In an interview, cited by NTV, Peskov said:

“If these decisions have indeed been made, they are in stark contradiction to our efforts to find a political solution,” he said, calling Merz’s statement “a rather dangerous decision.”

Reactions inside Germany

German politician Ralf Stegner (SPD) stated that while individual exceptions to range restrictions might be reasonable, Merz’s overall statement was “not helpful,” adding: “I believe everything that escalates the war is wrong.” 

Sören Pellmann, leader of the Left Party faction, called Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “a terrible crime,” but said: “The delivery of more and more, and heavier and heavier weapons has not ended the war,” also warning against “escalation.”

By contrast, Agnieszka Brugger, deputy leader of the Greens’ parliamentary group, welcomed Merz’s statement, calling it “logical and long overdue.”

Latvia’s Foreign Minister Baiba Braže has publicly urged European Union countries to halt the issuance of visas to Russian citizens, citing serious security concerns, according to her post on X on 26 May. Braže emphasized that the number of Schengen visas granted to Russian nationals had increased by 25% in 2024 compared to 2023.

Braže wrote:

“Latvia calls on the EU countries to halt visa issuance for Russian citizens, citing security concerns.”

Calling on visa ban for Russian nationals, Braže reiterated the earlier appeal made by Latvia’s Minister of Interior, Rihards Kozlovskis, who also called on EU countries to end the issuance of visas to Russian citizens, warning that such travel poses risks to the bloc’s internal security.

Sharp rise in visas granted to Russian nationals

Braže referred to a March article highlighting the rise in Schengen visa approvals. According to data discussed at the Council of Ministers of Justice and Home Affairs of the EU in Brussels, 565,069 Schengen tourist visas were granted to Russian nationals in 2024. Notably, 90% of those visas were for tourism purposes.

Statistics from SchengenVisaInfo show that Italy received the most visa applications from Russians in 2023, handling 143,517 requests—28 % of the total. Italy also granted the highest number of Schengen visas to Russian citizens, issuing 134,141 visas, accounting for 30 % of all approved applications.