from Scott Ritter
Jacques Baud, a Swiss national but who lives in Belgium, was sanctioned by the European Union autocrats in Brussels for speaking truth to power. He deserves the support of all freedom loving people around the world.
It has been nine months since the European Union (EU) implemented a sanctions package designed to impose “restrictive measures in view of Russia’s destabilizing activities”. These sanctions went into effect in December 2025.
Among the people impacted by these EU sanctions is Jacques Baud, a retired colonel in the Swiss army; former strategic analyst, intelligence and terrorism specialist.
Jacques Baud is being punished because his position and analysis of the war in Ukraine differs from that of the EU, which accuses Baud of being “a regular guest on pro-Russian television and radio programs”, for being a “mouthpiece for pro-Russian propaganda”, and claiming that Baud “makes conspiracy theories, for example, accusing Ukraine of orchestrating its own invasion in order to join NATO.”
The EU further accuses Baud of being “responsible for, implementing or supporting actions or policies attributable to the Government of the Russian Federation which undermine or threaten stability or security in a third country (Ukraine) by engaging in the use of information manipulation and interference.”
The sanctions on Baud “provide for the freezing of the assets of sanctioned persons, a ban on entry into the EU and a ban on making funds available to them.”
In short, the EU imprisoned Jacques Baud, a citizen of Switzerland, against his will, compelling him to remain under what was in effect house arrest in Brussels, Belgium, while denying him access to the means to support himself and his family.
This is what passes for democracy in Europe today.
Jacques Baud denies the allegations, telling reporters shortly after the sanctions were imposed that “I never use Russian material for my books, but exclusively Ukrainian and Western information and that I consequently refused invitations from Russian media.”
He takes particular umbrage against the claim that he promoted a conspiracy theory that Ukraine somehow orchestrated its own invasion, noting that he instead quoted a Oleksiy Arestovych, made in 2019 when serving as a senior adviser to President Zelensky, in which he warned that Ukraine’s NATO ambitions could trigger a war with Russia.
Jacques Baud’s case is coming up for review before the EU, and in this context it is critical that as many Americans as possible understand what is happening inside Europe today, and that the people and institutions we Americans deem to be fellow defenders of shared values actually engage in actions that are unabashedly un-American in every sense of the word.
I will be travelling to Europe in October to held shed light on Jacques case.
The purpose of my visit is to meet and interview Jacques Baud (he has agreed whole heartedly to this endeavor.)
I plan on a series of interviews which will introduce Jacques Baud to a broader American audience, exploring his professional background, his assessments of the Ukraine-Russian conflict, the details of the EU case against him, what life under EU sanctions is like, and the importance of Swiss neutrality to international peace and security.
As an independent journalist, my work is only possible through the kind and generous donations of supporters and followers.
I thank you in advance for your support in this important work. Free speech is a human right, not just an American value, and those who speak truth to power, like Jacques Baud, should have the support of all freedom loving persons around the world.