Austria does not plan to join NATO. This was stated by the head of the local Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Alexander Schallenberg, speaking in parliament. According to him, Vienna seeks to establish information exchange with other neutral countries – Ireland, Malta, and Switzerland – so that “neutral countries are not forgotten”.
The day before, the newspaper Die Presse wrote that these four neutral countries, after Sweden and Finland joined NATO at the end of 2023, sent a letter to NATO proposing to expand cooperation.
In particular, to be provided with “privileged access to NATO documents and information”, enhanced exchange of intelligence data, cooperation in the field of cybersecurity, protection of critical infrastructure objects, and combating “new disruptive technologies”.
