As the geographic bridge between the East and West, Austria has always had a central role to play in modern Europe. Despite 50 years of political division, it has succeeded in maintaining its
cultural and economic links with both its northern neighbour Germany and the countries formerly hidden behind the Iron Curtain.
The links between Austria and the major central and eastern countries (CEECs) go back hundreds of years: both the Habsburg and Austro-Hungarian Empires covered all or parts of what are now Poland, Hungary, Austria, Slovenia, Romania, Croatia, Serbia, and the Czech and Slovak Republics.
