Neutral Switzerland and Austria Join European Defense Initiative Despite Traditions of Neutrality

Switzerland wants to participate in the European Sky Shield air defence umbrella despite its neutrality.
The European Sky Shield aims to coordinate procurement of air and missile defence systems and enable cooperation in training, maintenance, and logistics.
Despite Switzerland's neutral status, the Minister of Defense intends to sign a letter of intent to join the initiative which currently has 17 participating countries.
The initiative was proposed in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and aims to pool expenses for missile defense systems, excluding the Franco-Italian SAMP/T Mamba system which France opposes.
Switzerland and Austria plan to join the European Sky Shield Initiative in response to Russia's attack on Ukraine, becoming the first neutral nations to join the 17 other nations involved.