Neutral states in the EU, like Austria and Malta, need to be listened to on security matters, Austrian Defence Minister Klaudia Tanner said ahead of Tuesday’s meeting with her Maltese counterpart, Byron Camilleri, citing the now reduced number of conflict-neutral states.
On Tuesday, Tanner (ÖVP) and Camilleri discussed the current situation in Ukraine, the progress of the war, migration challenges in Malta and Austria, and Malta’s measures to protect the EU’s external borders. The two also discussed their neutrality towards conflicts.
“Global security policy is in flux, and the world is by no means becoming safer,” Tanner said in the run-up to the meeting, adding that she wanted to talk about “the importance of our particular approach to security policy”, APA reported.
“While there are not many neutral states left, it is all the more important that we are heard accordingly,” she further stressed.
Tanner faced criticism from Austrian president Alexander Van der Bellen in May after she had ruled out support in demining Ukrainian territories due to Austria’s neutrality.
The country’s neutrality and what this means for the aid it sends to Ukraine have repeatedly been cause for debate since the start of Russia’s war of aggression.
(Chiara Swaton | EURACTIV.de)
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