Goed nieuws: Zwitsers laten zich niet ontwapenen

[Erwinvds]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door Fallen Angel

1) Je mag geen munitie voor deze wapens hebben
2) Je kan geen munitie kopen aangezien je daarvoor een vergunning nodig hebt.

OT. Zeg Fallen, die link in je handtekening is wel dood hé.
Allé, voor mij is het geen probleem. Heb genoeg handleidingen.

[Dade]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door giserke

Op uw pik getrapt?

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_did_Ge...in_World_War_2

[Zwitser]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door Dade

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_did_Ge...in_World_War_2

Een mooi voorbeeld van de lage kwaliteit van wat je op answers.com vindt.

"Also the production of raw materials certinly influenced Hitler from invading."

Zwitserland produceert nauwelijks basisgrondstoffen. Integendeel, tijdens de oorlog ontstond was er bijvorobeeld een groot tekort aan brandstof. Dat is de reden waarom het hele Zwitserse spoorwegnet geëlectrificeerd is.
De economie leed ook behoorlijk onder het feit dat een groot deel van de actieve bevolking onder de wapens was.

"The GDP of Switzerland spiked mysteriously in 1944 from an agrarian to a powerful bank centered economy that exists till today."

De industrie (machinebouw oa,) is in Zwitserland heden ten dage belangrijker dan de financiële sector. Dat was in de periode tussen WO1 en 2 nog meer het geval. Dat Zwitserland een "bank centered economy" heeft of had is een karikatuur die niks met de werkelijkheid te maken heeft. Het is ook incorrect te stellen dat het GDP van Zwitserland op misterieuse wijze "piekte" in 1944. Het GDP van 1944 lag lager dan dat van 43, dat lag dan weer lager dan dat van 42. In feite was Zwitserland de hele WO II in recessie. Pas in 45 was er weer economische groei. Maar daar was niks misterieus aan. Al die soldaten die opeens weer aan het werk gingen verklaren dat.

answers.com lijkt me wel een soort van wikipedia waar enkel maar achterlijken aan mee doen.

[poekieJ]

answers.com lijkt me wel een soort van wikipedia waar enkel maar achterlijken aan mee doen.

[D'ARTOIS]

@ Zwitser

idem

[Rr00ttt]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door giserke

De reden waarom Duitsland Zwitserland niet wou bezette was omdat de Zwitsers massaal gecollaboreerd hebben, en Duits gestolen oorlogskapitaal hebben bewaard, omdat de geallieerden bij de val van Duitsland niet aan het nazigeld zou kunnen.
Trouwens die gestolen schatten zijn nu! nog niet terecht.

Dat heeft er niets met te maken.

De hoofdreden was dat er weinig voordeel uit te halen viel tegenover een waarschijnlijk enorm hoge kost.

Dat de zwitsers in hun bergachtig terrein over een goed getraind leger van een 500.000 man beschikten speelde daarin een grote rol.

Daarnaast speelde volgens mij ook mee dat er weinig economisch voordeel aan te halen viel en vooral dat er geen enkel risico was dat Zwitserland zijn neutraliteit zou opgeven ten nadele van Duitsland. (Wat bij Noorwegen bvb wel het geval was en de onmiddelijke oorzaak was voor de Duitse invasie.)

[Dade]

World War II
Switzerland was surrounded by territory controlled by the Axis Powers from 1940 to 1944.

At the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Switzerland immediately began to mobilize for a possible invasion. The entire country was fully mobilized in only three days. The Swiss government began to fortify positions throughout the country. The total strength of the army and militias grew to over 500,000.

In the course of the war, detailed invasion plans were drawn up by the German military command,[7] such as Operation Tannenbaum, but Switzerland was never attacked. Switzerland was able to remain independent through a combination of military deterrence, economic concessions to Germany, and good fortune as larger events during the war delayed an invasion. Attempts by Switzerland's small Nazi party to effect an Anschluss with Germany failed miserably, largely as a result of Switzerland's multicultural heritage, strong sense of national identity, and long tradition of direct democracy and civil liberties. The Swiss press vigorously criticized the Third Reich, often infuriating its leadership. Under General Henri Guisan, a massive mobilization of militia forces was ordered. The Swiss military strategy was changed from one of static defense at the borders, to a strategy of organized long-term attrition and withdrawal to strong, well-stockpiled positions high in the Alps known as the Réduit. This controversial strategy was essentially one of deterrence. The idea was to make clear to the Third Reich that the cost of an invasion would be very high. During an invasion, the Swiss Army would cede control of the economic heartland and population centers, but retain control of crucial rail links and passes in the Réduit.

Switzerland was an important base for espionage by both sides in the conflict and often mediated communications between the Axis and Allied powers by serving as a protecting power.

Despite the prevailing public and political attitudes in Switzerland, some higher-ranking officers within the Swiss Army had pro-Nazi sympathies: notably Colonel Arthur Fonjallaz and Colonel Eugen Bircher, who led the Schweizerischer Vaterländischer Verband.
Portrait of Henri Guisan on a commemorative coin

Nazi Germany repeatedly violated Swiss airspace. During the Invasion of France, German aircraft violated Swiss airspace no fewer than 197 times.[8] In several air incidents, the Swiss (using 10 Bf-109 D, 80 Bf-109 E fighters bought from Germany and some Morane-Saulnier M.S.406s built under license in Switzerland), shot down 11 Luftwaffe planes between 10 May 1940 and 17 June 1940.[8] Germany protested diplomatically on 5 June 1940, and with a second note on 19 June 1940 which contained clear threats. Hitler was especially furious when he saw that German equipment was shooting down German pilots. He said they would respond "in another manner".[8] On 20 June 1940, the Swiss air force was ordered to stop intercepting planes violating Swiss airspace. Swiss fighters began instead to force intruding aircraft to land at Swiss airfields. Anti-aircraft units still operated. Later, Hitler unsuccessfully sent saboteurs to destroy airfields.[9]

Allied aircraft also intruded on Swiss airspace during the war, mostly Allied bombers returning from raids over Italy and Germany that had been damaged and whose crews preferred internment by the Swiss to becoming prisoners of war. Over a hundred Allied aircraft and their crews were interned.[10]

Switzerland, surrounded by Axis-controlled territory, also suffered from Allied bombings during the war; most notably from the accidental bombing of Schaffhausen by American planes on April 1, 1944. It was mistaken for Ludwigshafen am Rhein, a nearby German town, 40 people were killed and over 50 buildings destroyed, among them a group of small factories producing anti-aircraft shells, ball-bearings, and Me-109 parts for Germany.[10][11][12][13]

The bombing limited much of the leniency the Swiss had showed toward Allied airspace violations. Eventually, the problem became so bad that the Swiss authorized fighter attacks on belligerent U.S. aircraft.[14] Victims of these mistaken bombings were not limited to Swiss civilians, however, but included the often confused American aircrews, shot down by the Swiss fighters as well as several Swiss fighters shot down by American airmen. In February 1945, 18 civilians were killed by Allied bombs dropped over Stein am Rhein, Vals, and Rafz. Arguably the most notorious incident[15] came on March 4, 1945, when both Basel and Zurich were accidentally bombed by Allied aircraft. The attack on Basel's railway station led to the destruction of a passenger train, but no casualties were reported. However, a B-24 Liberator dropped its bomb load over Zürich, destroying two buildings and killing 5 civilians. The aircraft's crew believed that they were attacking Freiburg in Germany.[12] As John Helmreich points out, Sincock and Balides, in choosing a target of opportunity, "...missed the marshalling yard they were aiming for, missed the city they were aiming for, and even missed the country they were aiming for."

The Swiss, although somewhat skeptical, reacted by treating these violations of their neutrality as "accidents". The United States was warned that single aircraft would be forced down, and their crews would still be allowed to seek refuge, while bomber formations in violation of airspace would be intercepted. While American politicians and diplomats tried to minimise the political damage caused by these incidents, others took a more hostile view. Some senior commanders argued that, as Switzerland was "full of German sympathisers", it deserved to be bombed.[16] General Henry H. Arnold, Commanding General of the U.S. Army Air Forces, even suggested that it was the Germans themselves who were flying captured Allied planes over Switzerland in an attempt to gain a propaganda victory.[17] However the U.S. eventually apologized for the violations.

Danger from U.S. bombers came not only from accidental bombings, but from the aircraft themselves. In many cases, once a crippled bomber reached Switzerland and was out of enemy territory crews would often bail out, leaving the aircraft to continue until it crashed.

As a neutral state near Germany, Switzerland was easy to reach for refugees from the Nazis. However, Switzerland's refugee laws, especially with respect to Jews fleeing Germany, were strict and have caused controversy since the end of World War II. From 1933 until 1944 asylum for refugees could only be granted to those who were under personal threat owing to their political activities only;[18] it did not include those who were under threat due to race, religion or ethnicity. On the basis of this definition, Switzerland granted asylum to only 644 people between 1933 and 1945; of these, 252 cases were admitted during the war.[18] All other refugees were admitted by the individual cantons and were granted different permits, including a "tolerance permit" that allowed them to live in the canton but not to work. Over the course of the war, Switzerland interned 300,000 refugees.[19] Of these, 104,000 were foreign troops interned according to the Rights and Duties of Neutral Powers outlined in the Hague Conventions. The rest were foreign civilians and were either interned or granted tolerance or residence permits by the cantonal authorities. Refugees were not allowed to hold jobs. Of the refugees, 60,000 were civilians escaping persecution by the Nazis. Of these, 26,000 to 27,000 were Jews.[18] Between 10,000 and 24,000 Jewish civilian refugees were refused entry.[18] Although Switzerland harbored more Jewish refugees than any other country, these refugees were refused entry on the grounds of already dwindling supplies. Of those refused entry, a Swiss government representative said, "Our little lifeboat is full." At the beginning of the war, Switzerland had a Jewish population of between 18,000[20] and 28,000[8][21] and a total population of about 4 million. By the end of the war, there were over 115,000 refuge-seeking people of all categories in Switzerland, representing the maximum number of refugees at any one time.[18]
[edit] Controversy over financial relationships with Nazi Germany

Switzerland's trade was blockaded by both the Allies and by the Axis. Each side openly exerted pressure on Switzerland not to trade with the other. Economic cooperation and extension of credit to the Third Reich varied according to the perceived likelihood of invasion, and the availability of other trading partners. Concessions reached their zenith after a crucial rail link through Vichy France was severed in 1942, leaving Switzerland completely surrounded by the Axis. Switzerland relied on trade for half of its food and essentially all of its fuel, but controlled vital trans-alpine rail tunnels between Germany and Italy. Switzerland's most important exports during the war were precision machine tools, watches, jewel bearings (used in bombsights), electricity, and dairy products. Until 1936, the Swiss franc was the only remaining major freely convertible currency in the world,[1] and both the Allies and the Germans sold large amounts of gold to the Swiss National Bank. Between 1940 and 1945, the German Reichsbank sold 1.3 billion francs worth of gold to Swiss Banks in exchange for Swiss francs and other foreign currency, which were used to buy strategically important raw materials like tungsten and oil from neutral countries.[18] Hundreds of millions of francs worth of this gold was monetary gold plundered from the central banks of occupied countries. A total of 581,000 francs worth of "Melmer" gold taken from Holocaust victims in eastern Europe was sold to Swiss banks.[18] In total, trade between Germany and Switzerland contributed about 0.5% to the German war effort and did not significantly lengthen the war.[18]

[Zwitser]

Oorspronkelijk geplaatst door Rr00ttt

Daarnaast speelde volgens mij ook mee dat er weinig economisch voordeel aan te halen viel en vooral dat er geen enkel risico was dat Zwitserland zijn neutraliteit zou opgeven ten nadele van Duitsland.

Churchill zei wel ooit over Zwitserland: "They were neutral on our side...".
Zwitserland fungeerde bijvoorbeeld als diplomatisch doorgeefluik tussen de Gealllieerden en de As-mogendheden.