Swiss government buys drones from Israel to secure its borders

The Swiss government has signed a deal on Monday which will enable the country to obtain six Hermes 900 drones made by Israel’s Elbit Systems.

Haaretz reported that attention on the global refugee crisis has sparked an interest among European Union member states to look to Israel, one of the world’s leading arm exporters, to secure their borders.

Additionally, reports circulated a few days ago that Hungary and Bulgaria are thinking about constructing security fences along their borders-similar to the one Israel built on the border to Egypt- to stop the flow of the refugee influx. 

The Israeli government for its part remained tight-lipped over such claims.

The Swiss government underlined that the drones are unarmed aerial vehicles that will be employed for the defence of the country’s borders. In statements made to a French news agency, defence minister Ueli Maurer said that Switzerland is purchasing the drones from a provate company and not from the Israeli state. The drones, Maurer added, will be used only for intelligence surveillance.