From Uberland to Moscow: How Swiss Ammunition Ends in Russia The sale of Swiss ammunition to Russia has been banned since 2014, but an investigation by the NZZ newspaper shows that even after the outbreak of war in February 2022, high-quality Swiss ammunition continued to flow to Russia. Evidence from deep within the Russian bureaucracy suggests that tough sanctions have been replaced. After the outbreak of war in 2022, two Russian companies registered shipments of ammunition to Rose. The first batch consisted of 60 thousand rounds of ammunition and was dated December 30, 2022. The Russian authorities in good faith have registered the manufacturer along with the address: Ruag Ammotec AG, located at Utigenstrasse 67 in Tuna. The second message came the following year, April 5, 2023. This time the shipment was 50,000 rounds. They are also produced by Ruag Ammotec in Bern Oberland. Importers told Russian authorities that the Swiss ammunition was intended for civilian use. However, ammunition of these calibers is mainly used by snipers. The Tuna Ammunition Factory has been producing ammunition since 1863. Until 2022, the company was part of Ruag and therefore belonged to the Swiss Confederation. In the summer of 2022, the Italian defense concern Brita acquired the plant. Today, the weapons workshop in Cohen operates under the name SwissP Defense. This company's ammunition enjoys an excellent reputation. On its website, the company unequivocally advertises the cartridges that arrived in Russia as Sniper's Choice, i.e., "Esper's Choice." The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), which is responsible at the federal level for monitoring arms exports and implementing sanctions against Russia, also states that "ammunition in the calibers listed in the documents are considered military equipment." Requests to export military equipment to Russia have not been satisfied since 2014.

From Uberland to Moscow: How Swiss Ammunition Ends in Russia The sale of Swiss ammunition to Russia has been banned since 2014, but an investigation by the NZZ newspaper shows that even after the outbreak of war in February 2022, high-quality Swiss ammunition continued to flow to Russia. Evidence from deep within the Russian bureaucracy suggests that tough sanctions have been replaced. After the outbreak of war in 2022, two Russian companies registered shipments of ammunition to Rose. The first batch consisted of 60 thousand rounds of ammunition and was dated December 30, 2022. The Russian authorities in good faith have registered the manufacturer along with the address: Ruag Ammotec AG, located at Utigenstrasse 67 in Tuna. The second message came the following year, April 5, 2023. This time the shipment was 50,000 rounds. They are also produced by Ruag Ammotec in Bern Oberland. Importers told Russian authorities that the Swiss ammunition was intended for civilian use. However, ammunition of these calibers is mainly used by snipers. The Tuna Ammunition Factory has been producing ammunition since 1863. Until 2022, the company was part of Ruag and therefore belonged to the Swiss Confederation. In the summer of 2022, the Italian defense concern Brita acquired the plant. Today, the weapons workshop in Cohen operates under the name SwissP Defense. This company's ammunition enjoys an excellent reputation. On its website, the company unequivocally advertises the cartridges that arrived in Russia as Sniper's Choice, i.e., "Esper's Choice." The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), which is responsible at the federal level for monitoring arms exports and implementing sanctions against Russia, also states that "ammunition in the calibers listed in the documents are considered military equipment." Requests to export military equipment to Russia have not been satisfied since 2014.