Austriaʼs new government, the first three-party alliance, was sworn in on March 3 after five months of political crisis. Christian Stocker, leader of the conservative Austrian Peopleʼs Party (ÖVP), became the new chancellor.
This is reported by Deutsche Welle.
The government coalition included the Austrian liberal NEOS party, the conservative Austrian Peopleʼs Party (ÖVP) and the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ).
Christian Stocker and 13 ministers were sworn in at the Presidentʼs Chancellery in Viennaʼs Hofburg Palace. Stocker succeeds his party colleague Alexander Schallenberg as Chancellor. The latter had previously led the interim government and remained Foreign Minister.
Neos leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger is now the head of Austriaʼs Foreign Ministry. She has previously spoken out against "a dictated peace that only superficially offers peace", as a just peace is based on security guarantees. Meinl-Reisinger has also criticized the US-Russia talks without Ukraineʼs participation.
Before being sworn in, the new government overcame the last obstacle to forming a Cabinet of Ministers — members of the NEOS party overwhelmingly supported a coalition agreement with the Peopleʼs Party and the Social Democrats.
What preceded
At the end of September 2024, elections to the National Council (the lower house of parliament) were held in Austria. The far-right and pro-Russian Freedom Party of Austria won the most votes — 28.8%, ahead of the ruling Austrian Peopleʼs Party, which received 26.3%. The Social Democratic Party of Austria received 21.1%, the liberal NEOS party — 9.1%, and the Greens — 8.2%.
In October, Austrian President Alexander van der Bellen tasked Chancellor Karl Niehammer, leader of the Austrian Peopleʼs Party, with forming a government, despite the victory of the far-right.
Initial talks to form a coalition government failed. NEOS withdrew from the talks, accusing the other two parties of unwillingness to carry out "fundamental reforms".
Only on the second attempt were the ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS able to form a coalition.
Whatʼs wrong with the Austrian Freedom Party?
The Austrian Freedom Party has been cooperating with various Russian entities since at least 2008. In December 2016, the party leadership signed a formal agreement on “Cooperation and Collaboration” with the Kremlin-backed ruling party, United Russia.
Far-right leader Herbert Kickl and his associates accuse NATO of unleashing Russiaʼs war on Ukraine, believing that the main beneficiary is the United States. They oppose Austriaʼs support for Ukraine and participation in sanctions against Russia, arguing that this violates the countryʼs principle of neutrality.
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