Flies with Swiss gears: A fighter jet takes off from the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald F. Ford.Image: keystone
No war material for the USA, says the Federal Council. But important transmission parts for US fighter jets come from Glarnerland.
Mar 20, 2026, 10:36 p.mMar 20, 2026, 10:36 p.m
Benjamin Rosch / ch media
For a long time, the Federal Council was unsure: How should the US attack on Iran be viewed from a political perspective?
About a week ago it suddenly became clear: this dispute was a war. And this word has great meaning, not least for Switzerland, which is committed to neutrality. The USA has been one of the largest importers of Swiss war material for years.
Goods, you have to say since yesterday Friday. The Federal Council announced in a communiqué: “The export of war material to the countries involved in the international armed conflict with Iran cannot be approved for the duration of the conflict.” Permits that have already been issued and exports of other goods will from now on be regularly reviewed by an “interdepartmental group of experts”. We hear that on a weekly basis.
Neither Israel nor Iran are significantly affected by these new regulations: these countries have not been supplied with definitive war material exports for years, while Israel has only been supplied with so-called dual-use goods.
The USA is completely different. In 2025, the United States imported Swiss war materials worth more than 90 million francs. On the list of the most important export countries, the USA is in second place behind Germany.
Guns and gearboxes for fighter jets
Handguns and handguns make up a large part of the scope of delivery. The leading companies in this area include SIG Sauer and B&T (Brügger and Thomet). Both have a location in the USA.
However, the Federal Council’s decision has a much greater political impact for the Sauter Bachmann transmission factory in Glarus. The family company produces the transmissions for the American F/A-18 fighter jets.
What’s more: Sauter Bachmann is a so-called “single source” for the USA. It is the only company in the world that builds these key components. For the fighter jet that is currently used the most in the Iran war. The “Super Hornets” launch from aircraft carriers such as the USS Gerald F. Ford, currently stationed in the Eastern Mediterranean. For the USA, this means that if the transmission of such a fighter jet is damaged, they are dependent on deliveries from Switzerland.
The “Super Hornets”. (archive image)Image: EPA/DOD/DVIDS
Max Bachmann is Co-CEO of Sauter Bachmann. The company, which also supplies civilian customers in the USA, has already been hit by US President Donald Trump’s customs maneuvers. The latest decision by the Federal Council puts the company in an adverse situation. Bachmann says: “We will analyze this decision calmly and prepare an interpretation of the possible effects.”
For him, however, one thing is certain: “If we can no longer supply our American customers, we will feel the impact – as a company, but also as a country.”
It’s also an explosive time domestically
Matthias Zoller, who represents the interests of the defense industry at the industrial association Swissmem, shares this assessment. He fears that political pressure from the USA will increase, especially if the war with Iran drags on over the next few months.
“In addition,” he points out, “the USA is also an important arms partner for Switzerland.” Switzerland is currently dependent on US deliveries, such as the Bodluv Patriot defense systems and, last but not least, the F-35 fighter jets. And Switzerland already counts on the USA as a supplier for existing systems, such as the Stinger anti-aircraft defense system.
The Federal Council’s decision also has great explosive power in terms of domestic policy. Finally, just this week it was announced that the referendum against the new war material law would take place. Several organizations are resisting the planned easing, including the Switzerland without an Army group. “The changes to the law would give the Federal Council the room for maneuver it needs to prevent situations like the current one,” says Zoller. Switzerland is now in a very difficult situation: “But after the Federal Council had hastily maneuvered itself into this situation, it now had little other choice.” (aargauerzeitung.ch)