The security perception and security policy of Austria, 1989–2017

ABSTRACT

Austria's security architecture has changed significantly following the end of the Cold War. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the country's accession to the EU in 1995, and the Yugoslav Wars in the 1990s led to a re-calibration of the Austrian understanding of foreign and security policy. As a result, Austria became more engaged in international peace-keeping operations and was interacting more with international organisations (EU, NATO-PfP). Austria became more and more engaged with EU CSDP, which de-facto undermined the country's neutrality, even if the neutrality issue keeps coming up at the level of political discourses. The public assessment of perceived threats is shifted from more traditional threat categories (e.g. crime) towards new security challenges (e.g. immigration), but in general, Austrians feel extraordinarily safe in comparison with other European nations.

KEYWORDS:

• Austria
• common security and defence policy
• European Union
• security perception
• security policy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on contributor

Tamás Levente Molnár is a research fellow at the Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Budapest, Hungary.

Notes

1 Andrew E. Harrod, ‘Hidden Hands and Cross-Purposes: Austria and the Irreconcilable Conflict between Neutrality and Market Laws’, in Austrian History Yearbook, 43, eds. Pieter M. Judson, R. Nemes, and M. Grandner (Minneapolis: Center for Austrian Studies, University of Minnesota, 2012), 165–188.

2 Erwin A. Schmidl, ‘1960 bis 2010 – 50 Jahre österreichische Teilnahme an internationalen Einsätzen’ [1960 to 2010 – 50 years of Austrian Participation in International Missions], in Truppendienst, 314, no. 2. http://www.bundesheer.at/truppendienst/ausgaben/artikel.php?id=1002.

3 International Center for Transnational Justice, ‘Transitional Justice in the Former Yugoslavia’ (2009), https://www.ictj.org/sites/default/files/ICTJ-FormerYugoslavia-Justice-Facts-2009-English.pdfd.

4 Federal Ministry of Defence and Sport, ‘Sicherheitspolitische Jahresvorschau 2018, Direktion für Sicherheitspolitik’ [The Annual Review of the Security Policy 2018, Direction for Security Policy] (2017), 25.

5 NATO Kosovo Force (KFOR), ‘Key Facts and Figures’ (2018), https://www.nato.int/nato_static_fl2014/assets/pdf/pdf_2018_02/20180213_2018-02-KFOR-Placemat-final.pdf

6 Among others, Wolfgang Petritsch (EU Special Envoy for Kosovo [1998–1999], EU chief negotiator at the Kosovo peace talks in Rambouillet and Paris [1999] and High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina [1999–2002]), Valentin Inzko (EU Special Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina [2009–2011] and current High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Erhard Busek (last serving Special Co-Ordinator of the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe [2002–2008]). It is also worth mentioning that since 2009 only Austrian major generals (six so far) were appointed as Commanders of EUFOR Althea. Ursula Plassnik, ‘On the Road to a Modern Identity: Austrian Foreign Policy from the Cold War to the European Union’, in Austria’s International Position after the End of the Cold War, eds. Günter Bischof, F. Karlhofer, Contemporary Austrian Studies, 22, (Innsbruck: Innsbruck University Press, 2013), 78.

7 ORF’s programme has been repeated several times during other international crises and humanitarian catastrophes, such as the war in Darfur or the Syrian war. ORF, ‘Nachbar im Not’, http://der.orf.at/unternehmen/humanitarian/nachbar-in-not/index.html.

8 Parliament correspondence, ‘Neutralität versus Allianzfreiheit’ [Neutrality versus Allied Freedom], https://www.parlament.gv.at/PAKT/PR/JAHR_2001/PK0882/

9 The sub-strategies include the following policies: foreign and security policy, homeland security, economy and finance policy, agricultural, traffic, and infrastructural policy, as well as education and information policy.

10 The National Security Council is chaired by the Chancellor, further members are the Vice-Chancellor, the Foreign-, Interior-, Justice- and Defence Ministers, members of the Main Committee (Hauptausschuss) of the Parliament, while (among others) the Chief of General Staff, the Secretary-General for Public Security and the Secretary-General of the Foreign Services have advisory votes (Gunther Hauser, ‘Das europäische Sicherheits- und Verteidigungssystem und seine Akteure’ [The European Security and Defence Policy and its Actors], 7. Auflage, Republik Österreich: Bundesministerium für Landesverteidigung und Sport, 2014, 73–74.)

11 Federal Ministry of Defence and Sport, ‘Weissbuch 2010’ [White Book 2010], (Sektion II (Planung)/Abteilung Transformation, 2011), 17.

12 The Austrian Armed Forces, ‘Sicherheits- und Verteidigungsdoktrin’ [The Security and Defence Doctrine], (2001), 13.

13 Federal Chancellery, ‘Sicherheits- und Verteidigungsdoktrin, Allgemeine Erwägungen’ [The Security and Defence Doctrine, General Considerations], (Wien, 2001), 10.

14 The following tasks were set out in the Petersberg Declaration adopted at the Ministerial Council of the Western European Union (WEU) in June 1992: humanitarian and rescue tasks, conflict prevention and peace-keeping tasks, tasks of combat forces in crisis management (including peace-making), joint disarmament operations, military advice and assistance tasks and post-conflict stabilisation tasks. EUR-Lex ‘Petersberg tasks, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/summary/glossary/petersberg_tasks.html.

15 Die Presse, ‘Hintergrund – Die Sicherheits- und Verteidigungsdoktrin’ [Background: The Security and Defence Doctrine], (2010), https://diepresse.com/home/politik/innenpolitik/577311/Hintergrund_Die-Sicherheits-und-Verteidigungsdoktrin.

16 Apart from the governing parties SPÖ and ÖVP, FPÖ, Greens and Team Stronach voted for the new security strategy, too – only the right-wing populist BZÖ opposed it. Federal Chancellery, ‘Österreichische Sicherheitsstrategie, Grundlinien, Prinzipien und Maßnahmen der österreichischen Sicherheitsstrategie’ (2013), 9.

17 Ibid., 4.

18 The Austrian Cyber Security Strategy as guiding document was adopted in 2013. Subsequently a Cyber Security Steering Group and a Cyber-Security Platform have been established to manage public–private cooperation.

19 Legal scholars view the Irish clause (stating that provisions “shall not prejudice the specific character of the security and defence policy of certain member states”) as having no clear effect on the Article 42 (7) mutual defence clause with respect to safeguarding neutrality. Waldemar Hummer, ‘The New EU – A “Military Pact”? Solidarity – Neutrality – “Irish Clause”’, in European Security in Transition, eds. Gunther Hauser and F. Kernic (London: Routledge, 2006), 69.

20 A revision or replacement of the ÖSS is currently not in sight by the ÖVP/FPÖ government which took office in December 2017.

21 BBC, ‘Austrians vote to keep compulsory military service’, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-21110431

22 The Ministry of the Interior, ‘Österreich, Endergebnis inkl. Briefwahlstimmen’ [Austria, Final Result Including Absentee Ballots] (2013), http://vb2013.bmi.gv.at/

23 The European Commission, Standard Eurobarometer 61: National Report Austria (Brussels: European Opinion Research Group EEIG, 2004), 28.

24 The European Commission, Standard Eurobarometer 87: The Key Indicators Results for Austria (2010), 2. http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/STANDARD/surveyKy/2142

25 The European Commission, Standard Eurobarometer 73: The Key Indicators Results for Austria (Brussels, 2010), 2.

26 Apart from the results of 2016 and 2017, non-security policy topics were dominating the surveys, such as unemployment, the general economic situation, rising prices, health and social security etc.

27 The European Commission, Special Eurobarometer 464b: European’s Attitude Towards Security (Brussels, 2017), 23.

28 Arnold H. Kammel, ‘Austria’, in Strategic Cultures in Europe: Security and Defence Policies across the Continent, eds. Heiko Biehl, B. Giegerich, and A. Jonas (Potsdam: Springer, 2013), 21.

29 Austrian Development Agency, ‘Ministries & OEEB’, http://www.entwicklung.at/en/actors/ministries-oeeb/

30 Schmidl, ‘1960 bis 2010’.

31 The Federal Ministry of Defence, ‘Teilstrategie Verteidigungspolitik 2014’ [Sub-Strategy Defence Policy] (2014), 19.

32 Christian Langer, ‘Auslandseinsätze des Bundesheeres: zurückhaltende Akzeptanz im Offizierskorps’ [Foreign Missions of the Austrian Armed Forces: Restrained Acceptance in the Officer Corps], in Truppendienst, 298, no. 4. http://www.bundesheer.at/truppendienst/ausgaben/artikel.php?id=621.

33 The Legal Information System of the Republic of Austria, ‘Bundesrecht konsolidiert: Gesamte Rechtsvorschrift für Kooperation und Solidarität bei der Entsendung von Einheiten, Fassung vom 23. 04. 2018’ [Consolidated Federal Law: Entire legal provision for cooperation and solidarity in the posting of units, version of 23. 04. 2018], https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10001504

34 The key players of the executive amongst the government are: the Chancellor, the Minister for European and International Affairs and the Minister of Defence. As it is stated in Art. 80 B-VG, the Federal President is the commander-in-chief of the AAF (Paragraph 1), while the Minister of Defence is its supreme commander (Paragraph 3). The Parliament plays an important role as a controlling body of the AAF, mainly through the Austrian Parliamentary Commission for the Federal Armed Forces and the Committee on National Defence.

35 Plassnik, ‘On the Road’, 92.

36 Günter Bischof, ‘Of Dwarfs and Giants, From Cold War Mediator to Bad Boy of Europe – Austria and the U.S. in the Transatlantic Arena (1990–2013)’, in Austria’s International Position after the End of the Cold War, eds. Günter Bischof, F. Karlhofer, Contemporary Austrian Studies, 22 (Innsbruck: Innsbruck University Press, 2013), 22.

37 Plassnik, ‘On the Road’, 55.

38 Die Presse, ‘EU-Verteidigungspakt beschlossen: “Kein Rütteln an der Neutralität”’ [EU-Defence Pact decided: “No shaking of neutrality” (2017), https://diepresse.com/home/ausland/eu/5319336/EUVerteidigungspakt-beschlossen_Kein-Ruetteln-an-der-Neutralitaet.

39 Der Standard, ‘Österreich könnte ABC-Abwehr-Projekt der EU führen’ [Austria could lead the EU ABC-Defence-Project] (2018), https://derstandard.at/2000079228513/Oesterreich-koennte-Fuehrung-bei-ABC-Abwehr-Projekt-der-EU-uebernehmen.

40 European Council, ‘Notification on Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) to the Council and to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy’ (2017), 3.

41 The European Commission, ‘Standard Eurobarometer 84: Die öffentliche Meinung in der europäischen Union, Nationaler Bericht, Österreich’ [The official Opinion in the European Union, National News, Austria] (2015), 8.

42 In this context Austria supported demilitarisation and defence transformation projects, such as the disposal of anti-personnel mines and ammunition stockpiles.

43 Hauser, ‘The European Security and Defence Policy’, 75.

44 Kurier.at, ‘Doskozil startet “Aufnahmeoffensive” beim Heer’ [Doskozil starts “Recording Offensive” in the Army] (2016). https://kurier.at/politik/inland/verteidigungsminster-doskozil-startet-aufnahmeoffensive-beim-bundesheer/178.444.242.

45 International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance 2017 (London: Routledge, 2018), 77.

46 Austrian Armed Forces, ‘Militärstrategisches Konzept 2017’ [The Military Strategic Concept] (2017), 4.