Austria has no desire to join NATO. More cooperation in the context of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) does not mean “that we have any desire to participate,” Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) said in the ORF press hour on Sunday.
Schallenberg again took a stand for Austrian neutrality. Austria remains neutral, “and for good reason.” When asked about the recent NATO accession of Finland and Sweden, Schallenberg referred to the different histories and strong support for neutrality among the Austrian population.
Schallenberg does not want to discuss
Instead, Austria should conduct the security debate and discussion about Austria’s contribution within the framework of the European Union. “I think it is completely wrong to pretend that there is only NATO and that everyone else is an illusionist and does not see reality,” the foreign minister said, rejecting all calls for a discussion on joining the NATO.
Background: Stronger cooperation with NATO should also be anchored in the new Austrian security doctrine, which is still under development. Austrian neutrality “has a value,” Schallenberg emphasized, pointing to Austria’s role as a meeting place for international diplomacy.
Schallenberg also defended Austria’s role in supporting Ukraine. When asked about the statement by French President Emmanuel Macron, who had raised the possibility of sending NATO ground troops to Ukraine, the foreign minister said the discussion was “more than superfluous and unnecessary.”
No ‘war material’ for Ukraine
Citing neutrality, he said Austria would never supply “war materials, weapons, ammunition or anything like that” to Ukraine. Regarding the Russian sanctions, the Foreign Minister said that one must “look at the facts” regarding the current dependence on gas from Russia, but at the same time also emphasized the intention to get out of this dependence.
During the press session there was also a strong swipe at the FPÖ. ‘I find it very unfortunate that we have a party in this country, and actually frightening, that repeatedly (…) deliberately allows itself to be pulled over by Russia.’ He sometimes has the feeling that there is the right abbreviation for it. are ‘Putin’s friends in Austria’ – ‘because they partly take over the fake news and everything that is spread via Russian channels.’
Source: Krone
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