Austria's new government: poised to join Putin's gang
Opening for far-right Freedom Party would be a step towards 'the Putinisation of central Europe'

"Vienna could be about to get its first far-right leader since WWII," said Oliver Noyan on Politico (Brussels). Ever since Herbert Kickl's far-right Freedom Party edged a win in September's legislative elections with 29% of the vote, Austria's centrist politicians have tried to block Kickl from becoming chancellor. Last week, though, negotiations between those mainstream parties collapsed, and Kickl promptly "fired the starting gun" on coalition talks with the centre-right Austrian People's Party (ÖVP).
Kickl, whose party was founded by former Nazis, styles himself as the Volkskanzler ("People's Chancellor"), and has vowed to build a "Fortress Austria" by banning asylum seekers and "remigrating" those already in the country. It's a dark day for Austrian politics, said Michael Völker in Der Standard (Vienna), but mainstream parties like the ÖVP don't "have many options left". If the latest talks fail, there could be another election. Polls suggest the Freedom Party could do even better next time round.
"Chancellor Kickl is not a given," said Thomas Mayer in the same paper. Austria's centrist parties may come to their senses and try a second round of coalition talks, or form a minority government. And even if Kickl does prevail, that doesn't mean he'll succeed. He'll soon realise governing is far harder than campaigning. He won votes on an anti-establishment platform, railing against the EU and lambasting "the system". But as chancellor, he'd be the face of that system, and how he plans to close Austria's gaping €18 billion budget deficit while cutting taxes and protecting social benefits remains "his secret".
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Most of his policies will fail on first contact with reality, said Arno Tausch in Kurier (Vienna). His proposal to eliminate social benefits for asylum seekers, for example, won't make it past the Austrian and European courts. And as with all awkward coalitions, it won't be long till the "internal contradictions" between the Freedom Party and the ÖVP burst into the open and end this new government "with a bang".
The real worry is "the Putinisation of central Europe", said The Economist. While Vladimir Putin's closest neighbours in the Baltics see him "for exactly what he is: a murderous revanchist who invades his neighbours", a growing number of central European nations are sympathetic to the dictator. Viktor Orbán, "the strongman of Hungary", has cosied up to the Kremlin and repeatedly attempted to block European sanctions imposed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. And "he has a like-minded neighbour" in Robert Fico of Slovakia, while in the Czech Republic another pro-Russia eurosceptic is leading the polls. How chilling that Austria, too, is on the brink of being led by a Putin sympathiser who wants to cut aid to Ukraine. Kickl joins a growing gang, but his rise "will delight only the autocrats".
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Judge ends Eric Adams case, Trump leverage
Speed Read Federal corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams were dismissed, as requested by Trump's Justice Department
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump rolls out tariffs on virtually all imports
Speed Read On "Liberation Day," Trump announced a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to America and higher reciprocal tariffs for some 60 other countries
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 3, 2025
Cartoons Thursday's cartoons - a bull market, the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Law firms: Caving to White House pressure
Feature Trump targets major law firms tied to his past investigations
By The Week US Published
-
Venezuelan deportees: Locked up for tattoos?
Feature A former pro soccer player was deported after U.S. authorities claimed his tattoo proved he belonged to a Venezuelan gang
By The Week US Published
-
Rule of law: Are we in a constitutional crisis?
Feature Donald Trump defies federal court order to halt deportation flights to El Salvador
By The Week US Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
The EPA: Let’s forget about climate change
Feature You’ll miss the EPA when it’s been gutted, said former EPA heads
By The Week US Published
-
Schumer: Did he betray the Democrats?
Feature 'Schumer had only bad political options'
By The Week US Published
-
Trump's TPS takedown
Feature The president plans to deport a million immigrants with protected status. What effects will that have?
By The Week US Published
-
Is this the end of democracy in Turkey?
Today's Big Question President Erdoğan's jailing of political rival a 'decisive moment' that moves country toward full-fledged autocracy
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK Published