In his book The Austrian Way, Kurt Waldheim, a prominent Austrian statesman, former Foreign Minister and Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations, and now Secretary-General of the Organization, gives his opinion on the role of neutral states in the modern world. The only way that Austria can ensure the strengthening of its state sovereignty, the rise of national welfare and the increase of international prestige, the author sees in the status of permanent neutrality. Kurt Waldheim comes to this concept by analyzing the recent history of Austria from the end of the First World War, and especially from 1945 to the present.