Neutrality
- Trinity College in Dublin (Photo: EU Commission)
Among the 25 EU Member States, Ireland, Sweden, Finland, Austria, Cyprus and Malta are neutral. They are not members of any military alliance and are not bound by a mutual defence commitment.
The Treaty of Maastricht poses a problem for the neutral states as it lays the foundations for collective EU action in the field of Common Foreign and Security Policy Common Foreign and Security PolicyCFSP) leading to a Common Security and Defence Policy. Under the treaties, the neutrals will be allowed to take part in military EU operations if they wish, but they are not legally obliged to. They will not receive or share NATO military secrets, as the EU members that participate in such operations do.
The future
The Lisbon Treaty calls upon all Member States to support the CFSP - see newly proposed Art. 11.2 TEU. Neutrality is not mentioned in the EU Constitution, yet the "specific character" of Member States' foreign policies are referred to in the newly proposed Art. 27.7 TEU.
Links
See also Defence.
