Switzerland has joined the Ammunition Support Partnership under the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA). The Federal Department of Defence has announced that the scheme will enable the country to jointly procure ammunition and make use of services relating to its monitoring, transport and environmentally sound disposal. In addition to Bern, 26 other countries are participating in the partnership.
Briefly about the main points
- Switzerland has joined the Ammunition Support Partnership under the NSPA.
- The scheme provides for joint procurement and logistics services.
- The ASP covers more than 2,000 types of ammunition.
- Swiss companies will be eligible to bid for NSPA tenders.
- Bern stated that its participation was compatible with its neutrality.
Joint procurement and logistics
The Ammunition Support Partnership has been established to enable participating countries to meet their requirements through joint procurement. According to the Swiss Government’s assessment, larger order volumes can reduce costs and shorten delivery times.
Participation is not limited to the purchase of products. The NSPA will provide Switzerland with services relating to the monitoring of munitions, their transport and their environmentally sound disposal. The ASP portfolio covers more than 2,000 types of munitions for land, air and maritime applications.
Access to NSPA tenders
The Federal Department of Defence has stated that Swiss defence companies will be able to take part in NSPA tenders when Switzerland is a member of the relevant support partnership. Bern sees this move as a way of strengthening the country’s national defence technology and industrial base.
The decision therefore combines two practical approaches: meeting the country’s needs through pooled procurement and logistics, and providing local manufacturers with the opportunity to compete for the agency’s contracts.
Cooperation without joining the Alliance
The ASP is a mechanism within the NSPA — the NATO body responsible for multinational procurement, supply and logistical support. Participation in it does not imply Switzerland’s accession to NATO or its joining the defence alliance.
Switzerland It has been working with the NSPA since 1996. Prior to this new decision, it had already been involved in partnerships relating to air-to-air missiles, Stinger surface-to-air missiles and Patriot air defence systems.
How Bern links the agreement to neutrality
The Swiss Department of Defence has stated that participation in the ASP is compatible with the country’s neutrality. Should any of the participating states become a party to an international armed conflict, Switzerland may withdraw from the agreement in order to fulfil its obligations under the right to neutrality.
The issue of neutrality will also be put to a vote on 27 September 2026. The «Neutrality Initiative» proposes to enshrine this principle more firmly in the Constitution and to restrict military or defence cooperation with alliances unless Switzerland is under attack or immediate preparations for an attack are underway. The Federal Council and Parliament recommend that it be rejected.
