The continent’s evolving security architecture has prompted Sweden and Finland to abandon their historic non-alignment, and even Switzerland is moving closer to NATO. However, Austria continues to sit on the fence and Vienna has no plans to join NATO despite the ongoing war. Austria, a member of the European Union (EU), cooperates with NATO in various capacities and the country has become more integrated into the EU security framework. In this context, some analysts characterize Austria as essentially a free rider, merely surviving by luck while remaining outside NATO. Almost six months after the Ukrainian crisis, there is no serious discussion in Austria about formal NATO membership. Eighty percent of Austrians support staying out of the Western alliance, while the spirit of neutrality remains popular among Austrian politicians across the spectrum. On March 7, Chancellor Karl Nehammer, a conservative politician, tweeted that Austrian neutrality was “not up for debate” and the leader of the center-left Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPO), Pamela Rendi-Wagner, often calls Vienna’s neutrality “non-negotiable.” The right-wing Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) has the same pro-neutrality position as the pacifist Green Party. “After the horrific experience of two World Wars and the Nazi terror regime, neutrality is deeply rooted in the mentality of the Austrian population,” Wolfgang Pusztai, Austria’s former defense attache, told Al Jazeera. Since the 1950s, neutrality has long been associated with Austria’s freedom. After the Second World War, the victors of the conflict divided Austria under occupation zones. Then in 1955, the US, UK, France and the USSR signed the Austrian State Treaty, requiring Austria to declare permanent neutrality and exist as a buffer zone between West and East. “In general, the popularity of neutrality in Austria is based much more on myths and legends than on informed opinion,” Christoph Schwarz, a researcher at the Austrian Institute for European Politics and Security Policy, told Al Jazeera. “The general public associates neutrality very strongly with economic prosperity and security, both of which Austria has enjoyed in abundance over the past 60-70 years.” Over the years, this foreign policy strategy has helped the country keep its defense costs relatively low. Neutrality also allowed Austria to integrate into the economic architecture of the West, also benefiting from trade with the Soviet Union and later Russia. As the first Western country to sign a natural gas agreement with the USSR in 1968, Austria remains dependent on Russian hydrocarbons. Today, natural gas greatly affects Austria’s interests in avoiding actions that could overly compete with President Vladimir Putin’s government in Moscow.
Prestige, diplomatic influence
Beyond economy and energy, neutrality in the Cold War and post-Cold War periods has also elevated Austria’s role on the international stage as a “place of rapprochement between East and West,” Schwarz explained. Vienna – along with New York, Geneva and Nairobi – has become a key site for UN offices, as well as the location for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) . , and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the headquarters of OPEC. “A serious discussion about Austria’s neutrality would be helpful [Austria] to clarify what best serves its national interests. A preliminary question would be to investigate whether all international organizations would stay in Vienna if Austria joins NATO,” Pustai pointed out. Most Austrians believe that their country is positioned as a diplomatic bridge and enclave between East and West – which bodes well for national defence. Rendi-Wagner argued that “neutral states are not a threat to major powers and this strengthens our security.” After all, Austria faces no military threat from a foreign power with all of its neighbors being fellow Swiss and the microstate of Liechtenstein. And Austria, unlike Sweden and Finland, does not require NATO membership for defense. As Pusztai told Al Jazeera, “NATO membership is more a matter of international solidarity.”
“Not a friendly visit”
In April, Nehammer became the first Western leader to meet Putin since the outbreak of war. He did so with the aim of giving Austrian diplomacy a shot, hoping that Vienna’s mediation could help end the conflict. However, as the Austrian chancellor pointed out at the time, “this is not a friendly visit”. However, Nehammer’s trip to Moscow did not bring tangible results. Benjamin L Schmitt, a research fellow at Harvard University and a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, told Al Jazeera that “Austria’s self-defined geopolitical position as a so-called ‘bridge’ between Russia and the West has been thrown into considerable doubt since the start of the great scale of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.” This crisis in Ukraine has served to “undermine Vienna’s geopolitical perception that a ‘middle’ position between East and West could serve to somehow moderate such a conflict,” Schmitt added. Austria’s official line is that neutrality should not be confused with indifference or passivity. Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said Vienna was “helping [Ukraine] on a large scale, but not with munitions of war, and I think that aid to Ukraine cannot be limited to only munitions of war.” Along with 140 other UN member states, Austria voted in favor of the March 2 General Assembly resolution condemning the Russian invasion. Beyond this vote, Austria has supported Ukraine with non-lethal weapons, such as donating humanitarian aid and protective equipment. As a result, Austria-Russia relations have deteriorated since 24 February. “Ties with Russia are reduced to a minimum,” Pusztai said. “Austria was a preferred destination for investments by Russian oligarchs. Many even had residence in Austria. Now most of their assets are frozen.” Worried about Austria’s exposure to Moscow’s ability to rig its energy exports, Vienna has joined other EU members in working to diversify gas sources away from Russia. Since the start of the war, Austria has reduced the proportion of natural gas imports coming from Russia from 80 to 50 percent. “When the time comes when any form of dialogue for conflict resolution seems likely, Austria will want to position itself as a mediator. Based on what could be observed so far, Austria, however, will not be able to fulfill this role,” Schwarz said. “Austria is undermining its position as a neutral mediator through ever closer integration into the EU. Russia, at least under its current leadership, is unlikely to accept Austria as a mediator.” According to Pusztai, Austrian politicians who believe that Vienna can mediate between the West and Moscow are “completely unrealistic” and engaged in “wishful thinking”. The former defense attaché cited “a lack of honest analysis of the international environment and an aversion to seriously evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of neutral status.” Some NATO members and Ukraine have accused Vienna of maintaining moral ambiguity. Although this charge may damage Austria’s reputation among its neighbors, it is highly unlikely to lead to Austria joining NATO anytime soon. But Scharwz warned that there may come a day “when this strategy comes with a big price.”
