"Krone" commentary

Capital mistake by ÖVP and SPÖ

Andreas Schieder, the SPÖ's leading candidate for the EU elections on Sunday as a guest on ORF's "Pressestunde", certainly knows some clever things to say. However, he is not at all enthusiastic about Europe.

That won't do Schieder any harm. Those who have always voted for the Social Democrats will vote red again despite Schieder.

It is not much different with Reinhold Lopatka from the ÖVP. Those who have always voted for the blacks will continue to do so in their old loyalty.

Now some might say that Austria is so small anyway and can't achieve much. But precisely because Austria is not a major power, it should protect its interests better. We should not rely on Germany as a partner. Its neighbors have enough problems of their own. And Italy? Well, yes. Perfect as a vacation destination, but not the most reliable partner politically. That leaves France. But that's a completely different order of magnitude. They don't really care about us.

No fresh or interesting people
It is therefore a major mistake on the part of the former major parties not to send fresher or more interesting people to the EU Parliament. In the end, only those forces gain strength that pursue completely different interests and could turn the EU Parliament into a gateway for the enemies of our values.

And with all due respect to Lena Schilling, she alone will not be able to defend Austria's interests in the EU.