VIENNA, April 1. /TASS/. Austria’s neutrality is essentially a sham since the Alpine republic joined the Sky Shield pan-European air and missile defense system, Russian Ambassador to Vienna Dmitry Lyubinsky told TASS in an interview.
"The Austrian authorities claim that their participation in the Sky Shield program guarantees security to the Austrian people without violating Austria’s neutrality. We doubt that sovereignty can be protected when Austria’s military neutrality becomes a political sham," the Russian diplomat said. "And, of course, we have drawn our conclusions," he emphasized.
By becoming part of the Sky Shield initiative, Austria "moved a step closer to the aggressive NATO bloc," Lyubinsky said, while the initiative itself "has nothing to do with either defense or neutrality."
In 2022, Germany proposed forming an integrated air and missile defense system, dubbed Sky Shield, in Europe and jointly purchasing short-, medium-and long-range air defense systems. Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said Vienna’s decision to join the initiative stemmed from a desire to protect itself from threats allegedly being posed by Russia’s actions. The Austrian Cabinet signed off on the purchase of long-range air defenses.