The battle for the F-35 has only just begun

by Guy Mettan,* Geneva

(5 July 2021) They dared! That was the first thought that came to my mind when the news of the purchase of the F-35 broke. Fascination with technology and subservience to the United States thus overrode all other political, military and geostrategic considerations.

To tell the truth, this is only half a surprise. When Guy Parmelin confessed at his meeting with Joe Biden in Geneva that the latter had spoken to him about the F-35, the lights went on alert.

We already knew about the unfortunate tendency of our aircrew to befriend NATO, with its Norwegian and Portuguese bases serving as training grounds for our pilots. And after the Federal Council’s shameful capitulation to the USA at the end of the decade 2000, when the latter demanded the end of banking secrecy, there was no longer any room for doubt. It is enough for Washington to lift a finger and activate its lobbyists and spies for sovereign and neutral Switzerland to surrender without a fight. With such a lack of will for independence, one wonders whether it makes any sense at all to have an air force and an army. Why don't we open up our air bases to the American army while we're at it, then we'll be even better defended!

However, the battle for the F-35 has just begun. The Swiss media, which is not known for its harsh criticism of the authorities, has for once not spared with criticism, while some political parties, especially on the left wing, have already announced a referendum. We will vote again on this acquisition and can only rejoice.

It is time for the right wing to wake up as well, because it would be a shame to turn this vote into a referendum for or against the army. There are many people in this country who want a strong national defence that is not subordinate to a foreign power. By buying a European aircraft, we would not only have strengthened our air force, but also consolidated our position vis-à-vis our immediate neighbours, without fear of interference. Our security in this so-called global world depends first and foremost on our relations with our close neighbours, not on a power some 10,000 kilometres from our borders. To claim that the choice of such a strategic means of defence is a purely technical and not a political matter is absolute nonsense. We have known this since Sun-Tzu and Clausewitz.

What is the point of having 36 “Ferrari planes” with 1900 km/h top speed in a country which is 300 km long and has no declared enemy nearby? (1 July 2021)

* Guy Mettan (1956) is a political scientist, freelance journalist and book author. He began his journalistic career in 1980 at the “Tribune de Genève” and was its director and editor-in-chief from 1992 to 1998. From 1997 to 2020, he was director of the “Club Suisse de la Presse” in Geneva.