Austria looking for the government: clarification next week?

Austria has been without a new government for over 140 days, and the political leaders are now in communication again. As the crown reported that the ÖVP and SPÖ have intensified their talks in order to advance the coalition negotiations. After the failure of initial talks in January that were supposed to lead to the formation of a coalition, the question now arises as to whether this round of negotiations will be more fruitful. The two parties hope that Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen and voters can be informed about the current status by the middle of the week.

In an initial assessment, the negotiators appear optimistic, but a concrete breakthrough is still pending. There is a new strategy: the pragmatic trade unionist Josef Muchitsch and the third President of the National Council Doris Bures advise the SPÖ during the negotiations. The ÖVP is represented by party leader Christian Stocker and other key people, which makes the distribution of ministries, especially the Ministry of Finance, particularly exciting. Loud daily news It is very important for the country that the two leading parties conclude a government agreement, otherwise Austria could end up in an EU deficit procedure as a result of the economic crisis and rising unemployment.

Complex political situation

The talks follow failed negotiations with the right-wing extremist FPÖ, which only dissolved last Wednesday. Despite the precarious situation in the country and the loss of political stability, a renewed coalition between the ÖVP and SPÖ is still not in the cards. The two parties only have a narrow majority of one vote in parliament, while support from the Greens and NEOS is expected for certain decisions regarding the political design of future measures. The Vienna SPÖ state party chairman and mayor Michael Ludwig emphasized the importance of a quick conclusion to the negotiations, not least in order to alleviate many people's concerns about the influence of the FPÖ.