Austria is against excluding Russia from all international dialogues: they consider it “incorrect”/Corriere della Sera
In Vienna, they said they did not want to exclude Russia from all international dialogues. There are also no plans to join NATO – both the Austrian authorities and the population of Austria support military neutrality.
Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said that “Vienna will always be the capital of dialogue.” In his opinion, in a world where “conflicts – economic, military, intellectual have become more open, neutrality can have value.”
He said that countries should have the opportunity for dialogue, and the exclusion of the aggressor country from international platforms poses a threat to the work of diplomacy.
Recall that the Austrian chancellor was the first Western leader to meet with Putin in Moscow after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Then he explained that “it was not a friendly visit”, but a work one.
It would be incorrect to exclude Moscow from all platforms for international dialogue… Austria has always been a country that can talk to everyone. Vienna is the seat of the UN, the seat of the OSCE, a platform for contacts with Russians and Belarusians. Our expectations were low, but if there is an opportunity to talk face to face with the leader about war crimes, violations of international law, then it is worth a try, said Schallenberg.
Recall that this is not the first time the Austrian Foreign Minister marked by scandalous statements. Earlier, Schallenberg allowed himself to say that Ukraine should not become a member of the EU. In his opinion, Ukraine needs “another path” and not full membership.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry quickly reacted and said that it was disappointed with such a statement. In particular, Minister Dmytro Kuleba called it short-sighted.
After that, the Austrian Minister for EU Affairs and Constitutional Affairs Caroline Edtstadler said that Ukraine's accession to the EU is impossible “in the next 5-10 years”.
Latest news from Austria:
- Austria has given Russia an ultimatum on gas. They threatened to take away the underground storage facilities in Salzburg from the Russian Gazprom if the aggressor country does not fill the largest Austrian storage facilities with gas.
- Federal President of Austria Alexander van der Bellen said that Austria is developing a plan to phase out Russian gas. In addition, Austria stopped importing Russian oil following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This share was slightly more than 7%.
- Also, earlier, Russian media began to disseminate information that the Austrian company OMV allegedly agreed to pay for Russian gas in rubles. But Austrian Chancellor Karl Negammer denied these reports, calling them fake.
