A clear majority of Austrians are in favour of more intensive EU security policy but reject NATO accession, according to a recent survey by the Austrian Society for European Policy (ÖGfE).
If a referendum on NATO membership were held in Austria today, the survey found that six out of ten respondents would oppose it, and two out of ten would be in favour.
Regarding EU membership, however, 68% of the respondents said they were in favour, according to the 1,000 respondents who participated in the survey from 11 to 13 April.
“Scepticism and uncertainty are increasing, but the fundamental support for EU membership is beyond question in Austria, especially in times of crisis,” ÖGfE Secretary General Paul Schmidt said, according to APA.
“The population also says yes to stronger European cooperation in security and defence, while NATO accession is firmly rejected,” he added.
Over the past three years, the opinion on the question of NATO accession has remained more or less constant – notwithstanding the Russian attack on Ukraine.
According to the same survey, two in three respondents advocate intensifying cooperation between EU member states on security and defence policy matters, while 20% oppose the idea and 13% expressed no opinion on the matter.
About half of the respondents consider it “very important” or “rather important” that the EU and its member states continue to support Ukraine in its fight against the Russian attack.
“In any case, EU membership is not seen as a contradiction to neutrality, and a stronger, independent Europe in the world is fundamentally advocated,” Schmidt said.
In Austria, a debate on neutrality was reignited in February after ninety experts and public figures called for a reorientation of Austrian security policy in an open letter, criticising that the nation remains out of military conflicts one year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The letter called the current Austrian stance on security and its constitutional provisions “anachronistic”.
(Chiara Swaton | EURACTIV.de)
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