Evolutionary peculiarities of the concept of neutrality and its practical implementation in the foreign policy activities of the European states in the context of fundamental changes on the international arena caused by the collapse of the socialist camp, the expansion of NATO and the EU and the reaction of the Russian Federation thereto are considered.
While achieving these purposes, the author has carried out the following tasks:
- to systematize the types and functions of neutrality in the context of its evolution under the conditions of fundamental changes of the international environment;
- to determine the reasons and prerequisites for the formation of the neutral foreign policy course of Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, and Finland;
- to reveale the relationship between the policy of neutrality and the economic development of Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, and Finland;
- to trace the evolution of the foreign policy of neutral countries after the end of the Cold War;
- to discover the process of formation of new priorities in the foreign policy activities of Austria and Switzerland under the influence of the ‘Russian factor’;
- to establish the importance of the security component in the foreign policy of Sweden and Finland in the face of new regional threats posed by the Russian Federation;
- to find out the expediency of implementation of a neutral policy by Ukraine on the basis of critical analysis of the achievements of Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, and Finland in this area and their comparison with the Ukrainian reality;
- to formulate recommendations for the state authorities of Ukraine to be responsible for the implementation of the foreign and domestic policy of the state.
For the first time in the Ukrainian international political science the comprehensive study of the evolution of the policy of neutral European countries in the conditions of dynamic processes of European integration and the emergence of new security challenges caused by the ‘Russian factor’ is fulfilled.
For a long time, the principle of neutrality is an influential factor in international relations. Distinguish the following forms of neutrality: military (eventual) neutrality, permanent neutrality, non-alignment (non-aligned). Political science classifies neutral states as follows: Switzerland and Austria are constantly neutral states, Finland is implementing a non-aligned policy, Sweden is non-alignment in peacetime to be neutral in the event of a war (neutrality according to tradition).
There is now a renewed perception of the potential of a policy of neutrality. The mediation mission, traditionally for mediation with neutral status, is of interest to ensure a stable atmosphere in state actors with a high degree of conflict internal political potential. In addition, some of today's challenges and threats to international security require non-military approaches to addressing international issues. In today's world politics, the ability of neutral countries to perceive international problems is appreciated on the basis of independent and unbiased positions.
The author substantiates the statement on the beginning of a new stage in the foreign policy of the European neutral countries to lead to a revision of the importance of the principle of neutrality. For the first time, the review of the importance of neutrality took place after the end of the Cold War, which resulted in Austria, Sweden and Finland joining the EU. Once again, the issue of the appropriateness of observance of this principle appeared in 2008 after Russia's aggression against Georgia. The annexation of the Crimea and the beginning of hostilities in the East of Ukraine provoked new discussions about the ability of neutral countries to guarantee their own security.
The level of influence of the ‘Russian factor’ on the neutral countries is established on the basis of their geographical distance from the Russian Federation. Nowadays, Austria and Switzerland prefer a ‘soft’ neutralization of the threats posed by the official Moscow using the OSCE mechanisms and participation in the negotiation process. The OSCE chairmanship was quite ambiguous, since during this period the official position of the political leaders of Austria and Switzerland did not correspond to the position of the organization regarding the situation in Ukraine.
