|
The Unloved Democracy of the Inter-War Period |
|
|
|
Page 8 of 11
A Player on the International Stage Again
Austria immediately took up its position within the international community. On 15 December 1955 it joined the United Nations, a step to which it had for a long time aspired. On 26 October 1955 the Austrian National Council enacted a constitutional law guaranteeing the country's permanent neutrality. Together with the State Treaty, this law provided the legal framework for Austria's future foreign policy. Austria very quickly found a highly independent interpretation of its status as a neutral country. Its basic restriction to military neutrality while continuing to participate in international institutions can best be described as a "policy of non-intervention" which gained universal acceptance.
One of the direct results of the Austrian State Treaty was the return of all the prisoners-of-war from the Soviet Union, which brought great joy to the Austrian people. Among the home-comers were numerous victims of Stalin's despotism. The repatriation of Austrian citizens who were exiled by the Nazi regime in 1938 and in the ensuing years is a process that has not been systematically pursued by the Austrian State. Whilst in the immediate post-war period this lapse could be attributed to problems of traveling, in later years, however, it was a serious omission.
It was only natural that Austria, too, should want to benefit from the economic upswing of Western Europe, which had initiated the first step towards integration with the Roman Treaties of 1957. However, this generated friction within the coalition government. While the People's Party consistently supported a policy of rapprochement towards the EEC, the Socialist Party and its Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Bruno Kreisky, were in favour of incorporating Austria into the system of the European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA). In 1960, the treaty with EFTA was signed in Copenhagen. Austria's efforts to join the EEC met with harsh comments from the Soviet Union as one of the signatory parties of the State Treaty.
This process of rapprochement only saw a more successful development during the 1970s once the British-French conflict had been resolved and agreement had been reached between the EEC and EFTA in 1972.
Declaration for Settlement of the Dispute with South Tyrol
In 1946, as a state with restricted sovereignty, Austria had reached an agreement with Italy that guaranteed the German- speaking population of South Tyrol certain rights. However, this Gruber-De Gasperi-Agreement, named after the two Ministers of Foreign Affairs who signed it, was not considered adequate by the people of South Tyrol. When the new Italian Constitution ruled that the provinces of Bolzano and Trento should amalgamate to form the "Trentino-Alto Adige Region," with the resulting shift in population figures the people of South Tyrol saw the humble blessings of their autonomy dwindling. Austria brought this problem before the UN General Assembly, which recommended a bilateral solution for the two countries involved.
The situation escalated when terrorist attacks were made on material goods. Several South Tyroleans were arrested by the Italian authorities, stood trial and were heavily sentenced. Austria's negotiations with the EEC were also burdened by this conflict. In 1969, the "South Tyrol Package", containing 120 points and including an "operation calendar" as a timetable, was concluded. This paved the way for a solution to the problem. In the summer of 1992 Austria presented to the United Nations a "Declaration for Settlement of the Dispute", which satisfied the previous demands. This gradual process of resolving a bilateral conflict was acknowledged as exemplary the world over.
|
