A Swiss soldier who fought for Ukraine was detained in Bern. He faces imprisonment

In the Swiss city of Bern, the police detained a Swiss citizen, 36-year-old Ion Neidhart, who fought in Ukraine for two years as part of the International Legion and was a machine gunner.

This is reported by the Swiss publication Blick, whose journalists were present at the detention.

Neidhart came to surrender to the police voluntarily, which was not expected there. Switzerland is a neutral country, so its citizens face up to three years in prison for serving in a foreign army. Neidhart told reporters that he came home for the Global Peace Summit on Ukraine, which began in the Bürgenstock resort on June 15. He wants to draw attention to Ukraine.

"I am looking forward to my arrest. I am faithful to my decision to fight for Ukraine, and therefore for democracy," he said when he arrived in Bern by bus.

He called the summit a joke and says that you can really help Ukraine only by giving the country the opportunity to defeat Russia on the battlefield, and only then to negotiate.

Neidhart said that he is not afraid of prison. He joked that after two years at the front he could "sleep anywhere". "I want to wake up Switzerland and make people understand how important Ukraineʼs struggle is," Neidhart emphasized.

• Jonah Neidhart was born in Zurich, worked as a high school teacher, and since March 9, 2022, fought in Ukraine as part of the International Legion. Together with foreign fighters, he survived the shelling of the Yavoriv training ground, went through the Kharkiv counteroffensive, fought in Luhansk region and near Bakhmut. In April 2024, he gave a long interview to Ukrainian Radio Liberty.