Russia is preparing for further escalation with the West, outgoing Swiss army chief Thomas Süssli said in an interview with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung on Saturday.
Süssli served as head of the Swiss army for six years. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, he has worn a camouflage outfit in all his public appearances.
"European defense ministers and army chiefs say Moscow may be ready to expand the war from about 2028," Süssli said when asked about the possibility of war between Russia and NATO. "These are not prophecies, but warnings."
At the Warsaw Security Forum in October, Süssli claimed that there was no question of whether Russia was a threat, only how to counter it.
"Russia wants to be a great power again," he explained. "For this, Russia is trying to destabilize and divide Europe, with hybrid attacks, drones, sabotage, or wide-ranging disinformation."
Süssli also mentioned the possibility of Russian attacks taking place in Switzerland.
"Cyberattacks, disinformation, and espionage are already taking place today," he said. According to Süssli, over eighty Russian nationals related to Russian intelligence agencies are currently living in Switzerland. While no acts of sabotage had been detected in Switzerland thus far, over sixty cases of Russian sabotage had been documented across Europe.
Switzerland unprepared for shifting face of was
Süssli described how the face of war had shifted, from an emphasis on cyber threats in 2019, to potential biological threats during the pandemic, to tanks, artillery, and drones seen during Russia's attacks on Ukraine in 2022. "You see," he concluded about the need for preparation, "There is no either-or, but only both-and-also."
"Prioritizing means constantly weighing your options," he added. "Security never works one-dimensionally. An opponent strikes where we have vulnerabilities."
Switzerland's army was not prepared for a full-scale attack on the country, Süssli expressed in frustration, claiming that in an emergency, only a third of soldiers could be fully equipped. "The public and politicians must not be allowed to believe that the army is capable of defending the country if it is not."
Süssli rejected the notion that neutrality alone was sufficient to protect the country. "Neutrality only has value if it can be defended with weapons," he said. "Historically, there have been several neutral countries that were unarmed and were drawn into a war."