Comment: Military neutrality is dangerous

Protests against NATO membership in Sweden

Looking east beyond the EU level, there are hardly any countries that do not want to belong to NATO.

(Photo: dpa)

There are only a few EU countries that do not belong to NATO and are therefore non-aligned. In addition to Finland and Sweden, which are willing to join, there are also Austria, Ireland, Cyprus and Malta.

After the Second World War, Austria was forced into neutrality by the Soviet Union. Ireland does not want to ally itself militarily with its former mother country. Cyprus cannot become a member because of the conflict with NATO country Turkey. Malta is non-aligned to demonstrate its independence.

What they all have in common is that their neutrality, which – with the exception of Cyprus – is internationally recognized, also represents a protective strategy. They are not adversaries, so they do not pose a threat. Under international law, they can never be attacked.

But Russia’s attack on Ukraine shows that Moscow is not interested in international law. Neutrality is no longer a guarantee of being left in peace. There are admonishing examples of this.

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During the Second World War, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Norway, among others, were also neutral. Today these countries are among the founding members of NATO.

Even countries close to Russia do not rely on non-alignment

Looking east beyond the EU level, there are hardly any countries that do not want to belong to NATO. Only Belarus, Serbia, Armenia and Azerbaijan do not aspire to join the alliance. However, the first three mentioned are close to Russia. Belarus and Armenia are members of the Russian-led CSTO military alliance. Serbia has observer status there. This also shows that they are not relying on non-alignment as a protection strategy either.

For the Republic of Moldova, however, this realization comes too late. Moldova had stipulated in its constitution that it is neutral and does not tolerate the stationing of foreign armed forces on its territory – including NATO. This was intended to get rid of the Russian soldiers in the breakaway region of Transnistria. The plan didn’t work out. Instead, it is now feared that Russia wants to build a land corridor to Transnistria via Ukraine and possibly attack the rest of the republic from there. A resistance is pointless – the small country only has a few thousand soldiers.

The country is now likely to regret its decision to remain neutral. The last neutral states in Europe will also have to draw their own conclusions from this.

More: Comment: Finland’s desire to join NATO shows Putin’s failure.

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