Posted on 10/14/2012 11:05:39 PM PDT by JerseyanExile
The Swiss Army is preparing contingency plans for violent unrest across Europe. A nation mostly famous for its banks, watches and chocolate fears it may face a massive influx of European refugees in the near future.
One of the world’s richest nations openly expressed concerns over the possible outcome of Europe’s continuing financial troubles, and is currently conducting army exercises against the possibility of riots along its borders.
In September, the Swiss military conducted exercises dubbed ‘Stabilo Due,’ with scenarios involving violent instability across the EU.
Switzerland has maintained an avowedly neutral stance for decades, and refused to join the eurozone when presented with the opportunity.
Bern’s biggest fear is likely the disorganization of neighboring nations’ armies that would follow general instability; the eurozone crisis and the severe austerity measures in the EU are forcing member-states to significantly slash their military budgets. If protest continues to spread across Europe , police and armed forces may find themselves ill-equipped to manage the unrest.
"I will not rule out that we will need the army in the coming years,” Swiss Defense Minister Ueli Maurer said last Sunday.
The Swiss Defense Ministry has pressed ahead to modernize the country’s army despite political opposition. With its multibillion-Franc military budget and an army of around 200,000 soldiers, the country also plans to purchase new ‘Saab Gripen’ jet fighters.
“Minister Maurer, accompanied by whispers from the top uniformed leadership in Switzerland, is trying to raise awareness that Europe’s massive fiscal-cum-political crisis could get very unpleasant,” John R. Schindler, a professor of national security affairs at the US Naval War College wrote in an article for the XX Committee website.
The Chief of the Swiss Armed Forces, Lieutenant General André Blattmann, likewise revealed plans to deploy an additional four battalions of military police (1,600 soldiers) to protect strategic points across the country. Blattmann is expected to present the plan in December.
Professor Schindler predicts that, “if the next Anders Brievik were to target Muslims, not fellow Europeans, things could get unimaginably ugly very quickly,” which could trigger widespread Muslim uprisings in Europe.
Switzerland, however, stands in stark opposition to the multicultural policies and thinking now common in other European nations. In 2009, Switzerland passed a national referendum banning the construction of Islamic minarets .
And while the global economic crisis has forced several European nations to cut military expenditures, Switzerland has maintained relatively consistent levels of defense spending.
I think I like Switzerland.
They unquestionably made the best possible move by not joining the Euro. Probably saved their chocolate by doing so.
“An additional news story on the topic from a Swiss paper.”
Ach! Ich spreche kein Deutsche!;)
I always liked Switzerland, I should know as I lived close by.
There are a couple of decent internet translator like Bing, or Google Chrome. The result will be sloppy, but should make enough sense to get the point across.
http://www.bing.com/translator
Sounds to me, like the Swiss have an excellent grasp of the situation, and are preparing accordingly. . .
< cue zephyr Musik>
"You know what the fellow said – in Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, they had five hundred years of democracy and peace – and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.See ya, Holly."
Ping
...”The Chief of the Swiss Armed Forces, Lieutenant General André Blattmann, likewise revealed plans to deploy an additional four battalions of military police (1,600 soldiers) to protect strategic points across the country. Blattmann is expected to present the plan in December.”...
Sounds like they are preparing to protect their borders, unlike the US.
Eine dramatische Eskalation der Lage in EU-Krisenstaaten mit Auswirkungen auf die Sicherheit der Schweiz: Auf dieses Szenario bereitet sich die Armee vor, wie «Sonntag»-Recherchen zeigen.
Verteidigungsminister Ueli Maurer sagt: «Ich schliesse nicht aus, dass wir in den nächsten Jahren die Armee brauchen.» Denn die europäischen Staaten erneuerten ihre Armeen unter Spardruck nicht, sie könnten den Unterhalt moderner Systeme nicht mehr bezahlen, sagte er an einer Tagung. Europa werde schwächer. Wer sich aber nicht wehren könne, werde erpresst. Die EU bereite ihm Sorgen, betonte Maurer. Er fragt sich, wie lange es noch möglich sei, die Krise mit «Geld» zu beruhigen.
Das Verteidigungsdepartement VBS erklärt Maurers Aussagen im Zusammenhang mit der EU-Finanzkrise so: «Bundesrat Maurer sieht darin die Gefahr, dass sich deswegen das Potenzial an Gewalt verschärfen kann», sagt VBS-Sprecherin Sonja Margelist. Für den Verteidigungsminister sind deshalb 100 000 Soldaten, 5 Milliarden Franken pro Jahr für die Armee und der Kampf-Jet Gripen notwendig, um unser Land verteidigen zu können. Dass es der SVP-Bundesrat ernst meint mit dem neuen Bedrohungsbild, zeigte sich letzten Monat. Beim Manöver «Stabilo Due» wurde der Ernstfall geübt. Die 2000 höchsten Offiziere bezogen Stellung, um «Helvetia», wie man die Schweiz dort nannte, gegen Unruhen, Demonstrationen und Flüchtlingsströme aus den Nachbarländern zu verteidigen.
Armeechef André Blattmann steht voll und ganz hinter den Aussagen von Maurer. Er plant vier Militärpolizei-Bataillone, die mit insgesamt 1600 Soldaten strategisch wichtige Punkte in allen vier Landesteilen bewachen und schützen sollen. Blattmann will das entsprechende Projekt bereits im Dezember seinem Chef Maurer unterbreiten.
In Spanien, Griechenland und Italien tickt mit der Massen-Arbeitslosigkeit und einer gefährlichen Radikalisierung der frustrierten Bevölkerung eine Zeitbombe. Am Freitag warnte der griechische Premier Antonis Samaras vor dem Aufstieg einer faschistischen Neonazi-Partei in seinem Land.
Gotta love the clarity: How long will it be possible to calm the crisis with money...and...In Spain, Greece, and Italy, a timebomb is ticking with the mass unemployment and the dangerous radicalization of the frustrated people. The Greek Premier, Antonis Samaras, warned on Friday about the rise of a fascist neo-nazi party in his country.
Of course, the problem is that the right people aren't trying this...otherwise, socialism would work perfectly. (/sarc)
A Swiss General in charge of their 500,000 man militia was asked by a German general what they would do if invaded by a German army of one million men.
The Swiss general replied “shoot twice and go home”.
It looks like the Swiss reject national suicide.
The Swiss rejected muzzie minarets & were called all kinds of names. Looks like they get it.
Keeping their battle rifles at home helps, too, although I hope they have learned the value of the combat shotgun. More effective against swarms of “entitled” invaders.
The Swiss also overwhelmingly rejected a recent referendum by their version of the Brady Bunch to greatly restrict firearms. Looks like the Swiss know what they are doing.
They’ll all be headed to Zurich to find out how their Swiss Bank Accounts are doing.
Here is the real scenario: The EU is broke. The only way to avoid total collapse would involve mass expulsion of their Islamic immigrants, which would trigger a bloody uprising.
We are close to the end-game scenario here.
I lived there for 7 years in the German speaking part, then worked here in the States for a company in the French speaking part for 5 years.
When I was living in CH the whole debate about whether or not to join the EU was going on. The politicians and the business leaders were all for it.
They were forced to bring it to a vote by national referendum. And the people voted against it because they would lose their sovereignty (if you never lived in CH you would never understand the level of their national pride).
They took another issue recently to a national referendum. That was the vote against allowing construction of anymore minarets in CH by muslims. And they voted against allowing any further construction.
I have Swiss Army knives and I work on Swiss Navy projects.
Legend has it that Welles wrote that little speech himself.
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