Servus Nato / serve us Nato: will

Austria ever end its neutrality?

By Jack Elvey

The Republic of Austria has been associated with its neutrality on the global stage for over 60 years. One reason for this is rather obvious amongst budding historians. However, will the nation’s ostensibly neutral ways be tested given the political climate further east?

Landlocked in the centre of Europe and divvied up by the Allies, Austria faced rigorous political uncertainty following the end of the Second World War. Not only had it been on the losing side, but, geographically, it held a pivotal position between East and West too. Tensions over the country’s future grew as the Cold War stand-off between the Soviets and Western Allies meant that the strategically significant Austria could not be lost to either side. Only after Stalin’s death did the political stalemate begin to clear.

Julius Raab, Austrian Chancellor from 1953 to 1961, explored the idea of Austria becoming a neutral country based on the Swiss model, aided by the emergence of Nikita Khrushchev as Soviet leader in 1955 and his aims to improve relations with the West. Austria realised this policy of neutrality on the occasion of the State Treaty, formally signed on 15th May 1955 by the foreign ministers of the Four Powers and Austria. The last Allied troops left Austrian soil on 25th October, and a day later the nation’s parliament enacted the Declaration of Neutrality. This committed Austria to perpetual neutrality, preventing the country from entering military alliances from then on.

The now formally non-aligned Republic of Austria managed to free itself of its immediate past under international legislation and constituted the forming of a new Austrian identity – neutrality.

This neutrality benefited Austria, acting as a bridge between East and West, whilst Vienna became a haven for important summit meetings and a significant entrepôt for the Cold War spy world.

When the Cold War ended, Austria was still yet to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), which was originally intended to monitor perceived threats posed by the Soviet Union. Austria, however, joined NATO’s Partnership for Peace in 1995 and NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in 1999 – a forum for consultation on political and security issues in the Euro-Atlantic region.

Austria has nevertheless retained cosy relations with Russia until recently Following Putin’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, Austria was the first Western country to welcome him for a visit. Moreover, the conservative parties Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs (FPÖ) and the Österreichische Volkspartei (ÖVP) notoriously held consciously purposeful relations with Putin during their coalition between 201719. For example, Austria was the only major EU country not to expel Russian diplomats in the aftermath of the Salisbury poisoning in 2018. Former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz held meetings every 3 months with Putin in 2018 and Austria was the first country that Putin visited officially following his reelection. Ex-foreign minister Karin Kneissl (linked to the FPÖ) even invited Putin to her wedding and they danced together.

urz’s government only fell after a secretly filmed video that revealed --------------Heinz-Christian Strache (Vice -------Chancellor and leader of the FPÖ at the time) seeming to accept a financial offer from a woman pretending to be the niece of a Russian oligarch. Nevertheless, after the political upheaval of Kurz’s ÖVP government, the coalition with the FPÖ was replaced with die Grünen (The Greens).

Throwing Nehammer in the works – the gremlin of the kremlin

In April 2021, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer became the first Western leader to meet Putin following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and did so with the aim of some good old Austrian diplomacy, demonstrably reminiscent of that during the Cold War. Nevertheless, as Nehammer himself emphasised, “this is not a friendly visit.”

The cracks in the Austrian-Russian relationship had started to appear and even more so since March, when Austria voted in favour of the March 2 General Assembly resolution condemning Russia’s invasion. Since these interactions, Russia has declared Austria an enemy of the state.

On 7th March 2021, Nehammer tweeted that Austria’s “neutrality is not up for debate.” The Chancellor stuck to his word, with the country only supporting Ukraine by providing nonlethal weapons and donating humanitarian assistance and protective gear. To Russia, political affairs with Austria seem to be a lot like a Trojan horse, as ties have been reduced to a bare minimum and most of Russian oligarchs’ assets in Austria have been frozen.

Would Van de Bellen be barking up the wrong tree?

Austrian President Alexander Van de Bellen holds the official power in signing the bill to repeal the nation’s neutrality. Doing so, however, would mean changing the Austrian constitution with a two-thirds majority in parliament, which does not currently exist.

Another major factor that dissuades Austria from joining NATO is that its accession to the European Union has managed to broaden its interpretation of neutrality. The nation’s involvement in support of Ukraine, as well as its union with NATO programmes, presents Austria as a country that can rely on external aid in the event of an attack. Unlike Sweden or Finland, whose proximity to Russia catalysed their accession to NATO, Austria is landlocked and surrounded by five NATO members. Despite the war in Ukraine, the country is rather well protected. Entering NATO would equally mean raising its military spending to meet the organisation’s 2% of GDP goal for a member state. However, Austria’s neutral stance in foreign policy has helped the country focus its interests on economic and social resources ever since the end of the Second World War.

The Austrian psyche also plays a role in its refusal to tamper with its neutrality. After the horrific experience of two world wars and the Nazi terror regime, neutrality is deeply rooted in the mindset of the Austrian population. For the past seventy years, Austrians have been working to form their own identity as a nation and neutrality is one aspect that remains close to the bone. In 2022, an opinion poll survey showed that 76% of Austrians wish to remain neutral, whilst 18% favoured joining NATO. Neutrality is clearly anchored in the public mind and there is still no serious public debate over joining the organisation even eight months after the ‘special military operation’ started.

Thus, the chances of Austria ending its neutrality are slim. The political climate further east poses no immediate threat to the republic, and Austria may experience a free ride on NATO’s back should tensions brew further. Alas, in true Austrian spirit, the question of neutrality ist ihnen Wurscht.