Zurich: Bang at drone manufacturer Destinus

Swiss weapons are murdering all over the world. Nothing has changed in this truism, which is also the starting point for internationalist interventions. It is well known and historically documented how the Swiss arms industry supplies various theaters of war around the world. Official “neutrality” was hardly ever an obstacle, at most an interim hurdle, and not infrequently even an enabling factor in arms deals with states that were otherwise boycotted and sanctioned.

In the wake of the global crisis of capitalism and imperialism with all its destructive side effects, we have been observing a massive state rearmament for years. Against the backdrop of the decline of US hegemony, those in power are preparing for future wars. “War as a continuation of politics by other means” can hardly surprise us in the imperialist age. Accordingly, the bourgeois states are arming themselves in order to get involved in the fight for the new division of the world. The military powers of Europe (France, Great Britain, Turkey, Germany, Poland...) are outdoing each other with their billion-dollar investments and rearmament plans, and the EU states' defense spending has doubled in the last 6 years alone (to almost 500 billion euros per year).

Of course, this also has implications for the situation in Switzerland. Political warmongers from social democrats to liberals use moralizing or economic arguments to ultimately enable further integration into the war machine of NATO or the European Union. The national war economy complains that they are missing out on the opportunity to participate in the killing business and demands easier export conditions - here hand in hand with the SVP and other parts of the Swiss bourgeoisie. There is chaos and disorder in parasitic Swiss capitalism, and the haggling over profit opportunities is in full swing.

Destinus itself was founded by Russian entrepreneur Mikhail Kokorich in Switzerland in 2021, with a focus on developing hydrogen propulsion for supersonic aircraft. With the start of the war in Ukraine and the prospect of hefty profits, the development and production of military drones for the Ukrainian armed forces also began. In order to circumvent the restrictions in Switzerland's export law, production was relocated abroad and the individual parts were then assembled in Ukraine. 

Like the interests of the bourgeoisie, state connections are clear and targeted. A French air force general acts as a strategic advisor and a former Ukrainian finance minister is part of the management team. Although the headquarters were relocated to the Netherlands in 2024, the old company location in Zurich is still being retained for research and development.

The current address in Zurich was previously the home of the ETH spin-off Daedalean, which was taken over by Destinus for a mere CHF 180 million. By then, it had made a name for itself with the development of AI systems for autonomous flying. The connections between the arms industry and the local universities are typical of Switzerland.

This year it was announced that Destinus was entering into a cooperation with Rheinmetall under the promising name "Rheinmetall Destinus Strike Systems" to produce missile systems. Rheinmetall itself recently announced that it would double the workforce at its Zurich-Oerlikon location. So the business of murder seems to be more than worth it.

But resistance to the armament of those in power exists and is developing in different places, supported by different forces. Strikes, blockades, sabotage, demonstrations, camps, etc. etc. From Greece to Italy, to France, England or Germany, in Turkey and Kurdistan, in Palestine, Iran and Lebanon. War - even if its concrete form is of course different and uneven - is a reality for all of us. We here in the metropolises encounter it (or its drivers and profiteers) militantly, as an expression of a perspective break with capitalism. War after war, the main enemy is in your own country!

For a revolutionary perspective!

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