Switzerland is not part of the eurozone and holds its own currency, though the military has conducted drills to test response times should anti-austerity measures in Spain, Greece and elsewhere spark internal unrest at home or send a wave of refugees from troubled eurozone countries into its territory.
“It’s not excluded that the consequences of the financial crisis in Switzerland can lead to protests and violence,” a Swiss Defense Ministry spokesperson told CNBC.
“The army must be ready when the police in such cases requests for subsidiary help.”
Editor's Note: 'It’s Curtains for the US' — Hear Unapologetic Warning from Prophetic Economist.
Some Swiss politicians say the military is hyping up the crisis since a referendum on the country’s tough draft policies that keep the troops stocked with soldiers will go to the polls next year.
Under Swiss law, all able-bodied men at age 19 undergo five months of military training followed by refresher courses for a decade.
“The Swiss army is looking desperately for a reason to exist, this is why they always try to find new tasks,” said a spokesperson from GSoA — Group for a Switzerland without an Army — a group working to reduce the military activities of Switzerland, CNBC added.
“There are some very small groups which like smashing up windows, but this happens only two or three times per year and the police can handle it more or less well.”
The European Union won the 2012 Nobel Peace prize for its efforts to keep the peace amid an ongoing debt crisis that has stoked tensions among member nations.
Greece has received rescue financing arranged by the European Union, the European Central bank and the International Monetary Fund, though in exchange for bailout money, Athens has undergone painful belt-tightening measures such as spending cuts and tax hikes, which many say have made an already painful recession even more agonizing.
Protests have erupted in Athens and in other cash-strapped countries such as Spain, though European paymaster Germany continues to urge its debt-ridden neighbors to stay the course with austerity, arguing better days are on the way.
“The EU is currently undergoing grave economic difficulties and considerable social unrest,” The Norwegian Nobel Committee said in a statement.
“The Norwegian Nobel Committee wishes to focus on what it sees as the EU’s most important result: the successful struggle for peace and reconciliation and for democracy and human rights.”
Editor's Note: 'It’s Curtains for the US' — Hear Unapologetic Warning from Prophetic Economist.
© 2013 Moneynews. All rights reserved.