Switzerland’s upper house of parliament on Monday rejected a 5 billion Swiss franc ($5.58 billion) aid package to help finance reconstruction work in Ukraine. Lawmakers cited concerns that such a move would violate borrowing restrictions in the neutral country, Reuters has reported.
The Federal Council, Switzerland’s executive body, announced plans to set up a special 15-billion-franc ($16.7 billion) fund in April, proposing to allocate 10.1 billion francs to the Swiss Army and send the rest to Ukraine to support its economic development and reconstruction.
The fund, despite initially being backed by a Swiss parliamentary committee, had faced opposition from right-wing lawmakers and was widely expected to be defeated, the report noted.
With 28 votes against and 15 in favor, the House rejected both the additional funding for the Swiss Army and the reconstruction aid for Ukraine.
Opposition came from the conservative Swiss People’s Party (SVP) and the liberals from the Free Democratic Party (FDP), as well as from left-wing parties.
According to the report, lawmakers argued that the package would breach a so-called “debt brake” provision in Switzerland, and would result in budget restrictions.