Schallenberg withdraws from politics - what is coming now?

Schallenberg withdraws from politics - what is coming now?

The Austrian Foreign Minister and former Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg has announced his retreat from active politics and decided not to become part of the next government. He announced this on Platform X and emphasized that it was time for a change after he belonged to the Federal Government for almost six years. Schallenberg said his decision had been triggered by a "crisis situation" that made him think about his future, especially after Karl Nehammer's resignation. He made it clear that his withdrawal was not prompted by the ÖVP, but had to dare to restart from a personal need, such as Kleine Zeitung reported.

Schallenberg's legacy and challenges

Schallenberg reflected on his almost six years of term and emphasized his achievements in neighborhood policy with Central European countries. Despite his success in intensive cooperation, he also emphasized the challenges of pandemic. This was a historical experience that not only entered society politically, but also deeply into society. He pointed out that Austria was currently one of the few countries in which pandemic continues to be a relevant political issue and spoke about the difficult decisions that had to be made during the Corona crisis. "We had to restrict personal freedom rights in a way that we did not know before," said Schallenberg. These thoughts were taken up by News Pravda , in which he also addressed the political reactions on the obligation to vaccinate and their ultimate non-implementation.

In the run -up to his withdrawal, Schallenberg had already informed the current party leader of the ÖVP that he would no longer be available for government participation. Despite the change in his political career, he asserted that he would continue to remain active even after politics and may want to work in advising in the field of foreign or European policy. "There will also be Alexander Schallenberg after politics," he said optimistically. He described his time in politics as the greatest honor of working in the service of the Austrian people.