Suchergebnisse

THE ARTICLE DEALS WITH THE DEFINING OF SWEDISH NEUTRALITY IN THE INITIAL YEARS OF THE COLD WAR. THE ESTABLISHED BUT THE REASONS FOR THIS DEVELOPMENT ARE DISCUSSED. THE MAIN REASON FOR ADAPTATION IS IDENTIFIED AS THE SWEDISH GOVERNMENT'S AMBITIOUS ECONOMIC POLICY WHICH LED TO ECONOMIC DEPENDENCY UPON THE USA, ACCEPTANCE OF MARSHALL AID AND ECONOMIC INCORPORATION INTO THE WEST. SWEDEN MANAGED TO SHOW THE US GOVERNMENT THAT FORMAL NEUTRALITY COULD BE COMBINED WITH PRACTICAL MEASURES THAT IN FACT MEANT ADAPTATION TO US WISHES. THE ARGUMENT IS ALSO THAT THE USA USED ECONOMIC PRESSURE TO ACHIEVE ITS PURPOSES, AS WHEN SWEDEN SUBMITTED TO US DEMANDS REGARDING STRATEGIC EXPORTS TO EASTER EUROPE. CONCERN FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SWEDISH TRADE AND ECONOMIC GROWTH WAS IMPORTANT WHEN THE SWEDISH GOVERNMENT YIELDED TO THE US DEMANDS. BY FORMULATING THE AGREEMENT WITH THE USA AS AN EXPRESSION OF SWEDEN'S AUTONOMOUSLY DECIDED POLICY, SWEDEN COULD STILL CLAIM THAT FORMAL NEUTRALITY HAS BEEN MAINTAINED.

THIS PAPER ATTEMPTS TO ARGUE THAT A SUBSTANTIAL REASON WHY IRISH NEUTRALITY MAY BE REGARDED AS A 'MYTH' IS THAT WHILST MILITANT AND SOCIALISTS, SUPPORTED BY ONE SCHOOL OF ACADEMICS, HAVE EMPHASIZED THE PERMANENTTRADITIONAL ASPECT OF IRISH NEUTRALITY, MORE RECENTLY A 'REVISIONIST' SCHOOL, INCLUDING THIS PRESENT WRITER, HAVE ARGUED THAT THOSE WITH GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITY IN THE REPUBLIC HAVE ALWAYS TAKEN A MORE PRAGMATIC VIEW, AND THAT SUCH PRAGMATISM HAS EVEN BEEN DISPLAYED BY DE VALERA.

HUMANITARIAN AID SHOULD BE NON-POLITICAL. THAT WAS THE CONCLUSION ADOPTED AT THE SPRING 1995 MEETING IN MADRID OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (ICRC) AND OTHER HUMANITARIAN NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS (NGOS). THIS WAS ENDORSED IN THEIR NEW CODE OF CONDUCT, WHICH INDICATES THAT AID WILL BE GIVEN "REGARDLESS OF THE RACE, CREED OR NATIONALITY OF THE RECIPIENTS." IT FURTHER STATES THAT "WE WILL NOT TIE THE PROMISE, DELIVERY OR DISTRIBUTION OF ASSISTANCE TO THE EMBRACING OR ACCEPTANCE OF A PARTICULAR POLITICAL OR RELIGIOUS CREED." THIS PROVIDES A LAUDABLE STANDARD TO WHICH HUMANITARIAN ACTORS SHOULD ASPIRE. BUT IT IS SEVERELY BOUNDED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH AID ORGANIZATIONS OPERATE.

SWEDEN UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE OF NATIONAL DEFENSE TO A CREDIBLE NEUTRALITY POSTURE, AND SWEDISH DEFENSE EXPENDITURES ARE CONSIDERABLE. THE COMPREHENSIVE NATURE OF NATIONAL DEFENSE AND THE ECONOMIC DIMENSION OF SECURITY ARE STRESSED. SWEDEN SHARES STRONG ECONOMIC LINKS WITH THE WESTERN ECONOMIES. AS A RESULT OF AFFLUENCE AND THE RECOGNITION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE WESTERN ECONOMIC CHANNELS TO THIS PROSPERITY, OFFICIAL NEUTRALITY HAS INTERFERED ONLY MARGINALLY WITH THE PRIVATE PURSUIT OF COMMERCE AND FINANCE. THIS LIBERAL ATTITUDE TOWARD INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGES HAS INCLUDED ITEMS OF STRATEGIC SIGNIFICANCE, SUCH AS ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY, ARMS, AND AMMUNITION. SWEDEN SHARES WITH OTHER NORDIC NATIONS AN INCLINATION FOR MARKED VISIBILITY IN GLOBAL ISSUES AND ARENAS, HOPING TO PROMOTE INTERNATIONAL CHANGE IN NORTH-SOUTH ISSUES AND IN EAST-WEST NEGOTIATIONS. THE CLASSIC DEFINITION OF SWEDISH FOREIGN POLICY DOCTRINE IS FREEDOM FROM ALLIANCES IN PEACE AIMING FOR NEUTRALITY IN WAR.