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Austria has systematically rejected requests from the United States to allow military flights over its territory since the beginning of the conflict in the Middle East, strictly adhering to its policy of neutrality.
"The demands really existed and were rejected from the beginning," Colonel Michael Bauer, spokesman for the Austrian Defense Ministry, told AFP on Thursday.
He added that any request involving a country at war is automatically rejected. Austria has been a neutral country since 1955 and this policy remains fundamental to its foreign and defense policy. The decision not to allow military flights over its territory comes despite potential pressure from Western allies.
Geographically, Austria is surrounded by NATO members to the north, south, and east, while to the west it borders Switzerland, which is also neutral.
Vienna's position emphasizes its commitment to armed neutrality, a status that has kept Austria out of military alliances like NATO since World War II.
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