On the one hand, this relatively small country at the heart of the continent presents itself as very ambitious. For example, the government in Vienna initially opposed opening EU accession negotiations with Turkey in 2005, strongly insisting that the EU should respect its own capacity to absorb new members. Similarly, in 2013, when the UK and France demanded deliveries of arms to the rebels fighting in the Syrian civil war, then Austrian foreign minister Michael Spindelegger led the countermovement, which rallied a majority of member states. On the other hand, Austria is seldom willing to take risks in support of its commitments.
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