Contemporary strategic culture and neutrality

The practice of neutral states represents an important expression of modern strategic culture, as a specific attitude towards military force and the use of military force, especially when it comes to Europe. Although the international politics seemed to be directed towards the circumstances in which such a collective understanding of reality was difficult to maintain, neutrality, with numerous challenges, continuously proves to be a very dynamic and adaptable concept. The emergence of internationalism after the First World War, especially the intensified integration trends after the end of the Cold War, strengthened the process of creating the basis for a new anti-war security vision of Europe. At the core of such efforts was the promotion of cooperation and dialogue and the suppression of the importance of military force in relations between European countries, which commenced the process of establishing the strategic culture of the European Union as an authentic post-national model. The new strategic culture with its specific view on the nature of relations between European countries, which is completely different from the traditionally understood contents of such concept, suppressed the importance of national security perceptions, as well as the effectiveness of military force in international politics, promoting the idea of security indivisibility. Undoubtedly, the strong integration momentum and the transnational type of threats have influenced the redefinition of neutrality practice, so the approach of neutral states to European and Euro-Atlantic integration was considered a natural course of events. Thus, today, neutrality has been radically modified in some aspects, and it is no longer significantly determined by, among the other things, isolation, but by emphasized international engagement. The abandonment or significant redefinition of the main postulates of neutrality has prompted serious challenges to the importance of neutrality, the authenticity and scope of the strategic culture of neutral states. That is why the value contents of neutrality have begun to be considered debatable, so that for some the concept is outdated, while others believe that it can still contribute to strengthening peace and stability in the world. However, although radically modified, neutrality has not disappeared, and it still represents a concept that is an important segment of international politics. The revival of realpolitik in international relations in recent years, as well as the challenges of the multipolar concept of international relations, represent important incentives for the legitimacy of the choice of neutrality and the affirmation of a strategic culture that favors the value postulates of neutrality