Pilatus aircraft for Afwerki’s Eritrea
Goods category: Unclear
In June 2010, the Eritrean government purchased a Pilatus PC-6/B2-H4 Turbo Porter in Switzerland, registration E3-AAS, equipped for aerial photography. In 2011, the UN Monitoring Group described the aircraft as part of the government’s civilian transport fleet and included photographs in the aircraft-maintenance annex to its sanctions report. In its response, Eritrea objected to the use of the photographs in connection with embargo violations and stressed the aircraft’s civilian character.
Effect of the proposed War Materiel Act revision
Under the new Article 22b, the Federal Council could depart from all the licensing criteria in Article 22a under vaguely defined ‘exceptional circumstances’. The public would not have to be informed. The Federal Council could add Eritrea to Annex 2 by amending the War Materiel Ordinance. This would remove the exclusion criterion based on participation in an armed conflict and make approval the rule. The Federal Council could refuse a licence only in exceptional cases. Article 18 paragraph 1 would abolish non-re-export declarations in the vast majority of cases. Weapons for Eritrea could thus easily be supplied through a subsidiary or intermediary in a third country.
Countries
EritreaCompanies
Time period
2010–2011