Il cancelliere austriaco dice “nein” alla NATO, ma è desideroso di protezione nucleare francese

Austria’s new chancellor said he would maintain his country’s status as one of Europe’s few remaining neutral states, despite calls for more robust solidarity against Russia and criticism that Vienna is freeloading on the security investments of its EU partners.
“Joining NATO is not on the table for Austria,” Christian Stocker, leader of the centre-right Austrian People’s Party, told Euractiv in a recent interview.
Stocker, who spent 30 years in local politics and only became a national MP in 2019, has little experience in foreign or military affairs. That suggests he is likely to maintain his country’s tried and true approach to security: spend as little as possible on defence, while quietly seeking to embed the country into the West’s military architecture.
The real question is whether Austria’s European allies will continue to allow the country to get away with it.
A necessary evil
Austria agreed to enshrine neutrality in its constitution in 1955 in order to end its post-war occupation. At the time, the move was regarded as a necessary evil to rid the country of Soviet troops.
Since then, however, neutrality has developed almost mythical quality in the minds of many Austrians, who believe it was essential to the country’s Cold War survival. Though that conclusion borders on the ahistorical, there is no question that trying to dispense with neutrality – which the country last seriously debated in the 1990s – would be politically fraught.
Even so, many in Austria’s senior military circles worry that neutrality has left the country exposed at a particularly dangerous moment in history, especially considering how little Vienna spends on defence.
While similar concerns prompted Sweden and Finland to abandon their neutrality and join NATO in the wake of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, Austria hasn’t budged.
With its military spending at around 1% of GDP last year, Austria ranks near the bottom of Europe’s league tables when it comes to investing in defence, alongside other laggards, including Ireland and Malta, which are also neutral.
In contrast to those countries, however, Austria is significantly more vulnerable to Europe’s deteriorating security situation.
For one, its eastern border is less than 600 kilometres from Ukraine. For another, its two eastern neighbours, Slovakia and Hungary, have Russia-friendly leaders. Perhaps most worrying, however, is what western intelligence agencies see as Moscow’s infiltration of key power centres in Austria’s political establishment and economy.
The ‘escape clause’
In the interview, Stocker insisted that his government took the security threats seriously, noting that Austria had committed to lift defence expenditure to 2% of GDP – albeit only by 2032. Meanwhile, much of the rest of Europe is targeting defence outlays equal to 3.5% of GDP and beyond in the coming years.
“In times when we are trying to save and cut back on a lot of spending … doubling the defence budget is already an ambitious goal,” Stocker said.
Complicating matters is that Austria’s budget is already under severe strain.
The International Monetary Fund forecast last month that Austria will be the only industrialised country in recession this year. Austria’s debt load is among the highest in the EU and last year’s budget deficit far exceeded the bloc’s limits, at 4.7%.
Stocker’s new coalition government – an alliance with the Social Democrats and the liberal Neos – has promised cuts of €6 billion this year to avoid the EU’s excessive deficit procedure, leaving little fiscal headroom for investment.
“We now have two very difficult years ahead of us,” said Stocker, adding that he hoped Austria could return to growth by slashing red tape and improving investment conditions.
In the meantime, he wants to trigger the EU’s “escape clause”, an exemption from European fiscal rules for defence spending, that is currently being negotiated.
“If we can use it, we will use it,” Stocker said.
The accidental chancellor
Even if the EU allows Austria to do so, however, the country’s borrowing costs are likely to rise as it takes on more debt.
Considering the enormous pressures they face, Stocker and his government may not be around long enough to find out.
His ascension to the chancellorship in his mid-sixties was something of an accident of history. Stocker’s predecessor, Karl Nehammer, unexpectedly resigned in January after failing to build a centrist coalition following a September national election in which the far-right Freedom Party took first place.
Stocker, previously his party’s general secretary, then took over as leader and tried to forge an alliance with the Freedom Party, an effort that also failed. He subsequently rekindled the original talks over a centrist coalition – the same constellation Nehammer had envisioned – and succeeded in March.
Even so, the far right, buoyed by frustration over the weakening economy, has strengthened in recent months and leads the field by about 10 percentage points in most polls.
No to NATO, yes to nukes
The persistent strength of Austria’s far right, which is effectively pro-Russian, may explain Stocker’s reluctance to pursue bolder steps on European defence. Despite the challenges Europe faces in building a credible deterrent at a time when many fear the US is retreating from the continent, Stocker made it clear that he opposes the issuance of common EU debt to fund defence.
Stocker insisted that Austria is a reliable Western partner within the boundaries of the EU’s mutual assistance clause, from which it also benefits. By his reading, the clause also means that France’s nuclear umbrella “would also protect Austria” in the event of an attack.
Yet if that were a realistic scenario, NATO would be long obsolete. Though France has recently signalled a willingness to expand its own nuclear protection into a European umbrella – not least as a way to share the high cost of maintenance – such a scenario would take years, if not decades, to realise.
“Anything that increases security in Europe is positive,” Stocker said.
On that score, Stocker said he was focusing on trying to bring Ukraine peace talks to Vienna.
“Vienna remains a good place to negotiate international issues in the future – that would also be a possibility for the Ukraine war,” he said.
So far, Ukraine, which has doubts concerning Austria’s claim to neutrality when it comes to Russia, has yet to accept the offer.

Let’s move Austria where Belarus is and then there would be no ‘nein’.
Neutral, my butt, they are bordering with EU contries

Austria is probably the most antipatic EU state next to hungary, they make a great toxic team

I will never understand why so many Europeans remain blind to the fact that Austria is overrun with rich Russian businessmen.

The point is, that the political elite in Austria knows that its neutrality is pointless or even outright dangerous and detrimental for Austria but it is such an ingrained myth in the Austrian psyche that you cannot name a duck a duck. It is selfdeceiving to the point where people who state the obvious are looked at as if they belong into an asylum for the mentally unstable.

Austria is a country that follows a security dogma that states, we are solidaric in the EU but neutral outside of it. If you deconstruct that sentence, you notice that this also is utter nonsense.

We are so decoupled from reality, that even talking about security policy in a meaningful has become impossible. We are a country in which a main party campaigned against buying the Eurofighter because it is a “Jagdbomber” a multi purpose jet fughter, while advocating for the Grippen, which has the ground attack role in its designation. Do never take an Austrian politician serious when it comes to defense issues.

Freeloaders

Well, even if it’s not the best deal it’s still better to start somewhere so everyone take France seriously.

> ‘nein’ to NATO, but is eager for French nuclear protection

Surely a case of trying to have your cake and eating it.

Doesn’t want to be part of the defensive pact, doesn’t want to put the work In but live with the peace that the rest of Europe creates for them… similarly wants France to provide nukes 🤢😂😂

Pick one

The path beteween being putins bitch and protected by nato is really narrow /s

They are A-ok with having NATO protection but offering nothing to it.

I work on the airport in Viena and the people speaking Russian raised a lot since trump win or at least for a few weeks after the win

No NATO, no nuclear protection.

I hate our foreign policy so much. We are a leech on Europe’s security.

Can’t have your cake and eat it too