"Krone" commentary

A Tibetan Buddha could do the country a world of good

Stoic like a Tibetan Buddha: Christian Stocker(Bild: Eva Manhart)

The Austrians have seen and heard their new Federal Chancellor quite often by now. They more or less know what he intends to do as head of the three-party government.

But who is Christian Stocker really? What makes this man tick? Conny Bischofberger gets to the bottom of this in the first major "Persönlich" interview with the new Federal Chancellor.

The lawyer from Wiener Neustadt, who has made a late career in top politics, knows that the position of head of government was still out of the question for him at the beginning of the year. But in political life, things cannot be planned, he says, so he is guided by a saying: "Never start to stop, never stop to start."

Letter to "Krone" readers: Klaus Herrmann, Managing Editor-in-Chief(Bild: Krone KREATIV/stock.adobe.com)

Time and again, his calm and composure shines through. Insults from his former negotiating partner Herbert Kickl, for example, "don't offend him at all". Bischofberger wants to know what to say about Christian Stocker. He had achieved "what was possible at the time - and perhaps a little bit more".

And what does Bischofberger say about the new Federal Chancellor after the interview? "He argues with the stoic composure of a Tibetan Buddha." In such wildly turbulent times as these, someone like that at the top can do the country a world of good.

Have a nice Sunday with your "crown"!