Switzerland will send dozens of trams to Ukraine

Switzerland, as a neutral country, will not send weapons to Ukraine, but its government said dozens of retired trams from Bern and Zurich will be sent to the war-torn country, AFP reported.
Eleven trams will be sent to the large western city of Lviv, whose population has swelled with people fleeing conflict zones in the south and east, a government statement said.
The central city of Vinnytsia will also receive trams, which are also in "perfect working order".
"The vehicles are in good condition and will be able to run for another 10-12 years in Ukraine," the statement said, adding that the first trams would be delivered in the third quarter of this year.
"Many people took refuge in Lviv after the Russian offensive, and many businesses were also relocated there, exposing the city to significant population growth," it added.
"Road traffic has increased accordingly, so the extra trams are very welcome."
Switzerland is covering the cost of delivering the trams to Lviv and training workers to maintain them, as well as building a new tram line to a hospital.
Retired trams from Zurich were first sent to Vinnytsia between 2007 and 2011, with more to be delivered under contract from 2021. Under the new agreement, 31 more trams are being sent from Switzerland's financial capital.
Besides trams from Zurich to Vinnytsia, old trams from Bern are still in operation in Romania, and former trams from Basel are in service in Belgrade.
Switzerland's long-standing position is one of well-armed military neutrality.
Although it joined the European Union's economic sanctions against Russia following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, it has refused to send weapons or allow countries that possess Swiss-made weapons to re-export them to Ukraine. /BGNES