Fear of going it alone

ÖVP negotiator sees blue EU spectre

Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer, Secretary General of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, is negotiating on behalf of the ÖVP.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/APA/AFP, ROLAND SCHLAGER)

The People's Party is worried about the FPÖ going it alone at EU level. Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer, Secretary General of the Chamber of Commerce, sees potential for conflict here. In addition to new "mechanisms", he is also calling on the Freedom Party to adopt a western-oriented policy and economy.

Hattmannsdorfer, who also sits on the coalition negotiating team for the ÖVP, insists on a "mechanism" for a possible blue-Turkish federal government that regulates voting behavior at EU level.

"This is a central question", he said on Saturday's Ö1 "Morgenjournal". The ÖVP has been demanding a commitment from the Freedom Party to a pro-European policy since the start of the talks.

"Need for action" with regard to the EU
The ÖVP negotiator cited the example of the Netherlands. There, a position requires a government resolution. What's more: "In Scandinavian countries, a parliamentary resolution is sometimes required for a position at EU level. And we have a need for action here."

But this is not a "Lex Kickl". The Greens had broken this "unspoken rule" of speaking with "one voice" as the federal government. "We must not allow something like what happened under Minister (Leonore, note) Gewessler to happen again," criticized the WKO Secretary General.

Last summer, the EU renaturation regulation was adopted by the Council of the EU member states. The narrow majority was also made possible by the approval of Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens), who, however, acted against the will of her coalition partner ÖVP. 

The People's Party obviously sees huge potential for conflict here for a possible blue-black coalition. The ÖVP leader had already called for a "course correction" here - to the outcry of the FPÖ. He spoke of a move towards the "center".

Kickl and his provincial leaders then saw the basis for talks jeopardized. "The FPÖ is also in favor of a unified and clear stance by the federal government at EU level - a principle that was always a matter of course until the Gewessler case," the Freedom Party leader announced at the time in an emphatically mild manner. However, there are still high hurdles when it comes to the content of the joint position.

Stocker and Kickl are arguing about the definition of "the center" of society.(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

People's Party sees prosperity at risk
For ÖVP negotiator Hattmannsdorfer, a pro-Western policy is also non-negotiable in economic terms, otherwise prosperity in Austria cannot be maintained. He would advise the possible coalition partner FPÖ against an eastern orientation. Transatlantic relations are an "imperative of the hour", especially in times of new protectionism. 

According to the ÖVP negotiator, a possible opening towards Russia would not be accepted: "Austria stands unequivocally on the side of Ukraine. That also answers this question."