Austria's Foreign Minister under fire: Neutrality in danger!

Austria's Foreign Minister under fire: Neutrality in danger!

The Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger (NEOS) caused heated debates with her first trip abroad to Kiev, which the FPÖ and her party leader Herbert Kickl called on the scene. According to Kickl, she does not appear as a representative of Austria, but rather as an EU and NATO-envoys, which in her opinion harms the interests and security of neutral Austria. He expressed this criticism on Facebook and questioned whether a trip to a war zone was appropriate, while Austria officially remains neutral. Rather, Kickl called for a call for negotiations and peace instead of the trip, which in his opinion reflects a problematic understanding of the office. In addition, he complained that the first trip abroad did not even lead to Brussels, which in question.

The FPÖ politician Petra Steger agreed to this concerns and criticized in her statement that the minister bought Ukrainian grain for the Middle East with a high tax money amount, while the Austrian citizens suffer from austerity measures. Her call to solidarity with Ukraine was seen as a contradiction to a possible Austrian commitment in international peace missions, which jeopardizes Austria's entire neutrality. Kickl, who was recently strong in media reporting, was able to convince with 91 percent of the votes at the FPÖ party congress and plans to make the FPÖ a central player in Austrian politics. This development comes in the time when the ÖVP is faced with forecasts of large losses in upcoming elections, which Kickl's position could further consolidate, so reported Weekend.at .