Foreign Minister moves up: Austria: Schallenberg becomes acting Chancellor

Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg is to act as Chancellor in Austria during the current phase of government formation. This was announced by the office of Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen.

At the weekend, the previous head of government, Karl Nehammer, announced his resignation after his efforts to form a coalition of centrist parties failed. He wants to formally resign on Friday. On the same day, Schallenberg will temporarily take over the administration of the Federal Chancellery and the chairmanship of the government in addition to his ministerial office.

On Monday, President Van der Bellen commissioned the head of the right-wing populist FPÖ, Herbert Kickl, to form a government. He wants to form a coalition with the conservative ÖVP.

The ÖVP politician Schallenberg does not want to belong to an FPÖ-led government. The 55-year-old has served as Austria’s chief diplomat since 2019 – with a short interruption: at the end of 2021, he also took over the Chancellery for a few weeks during a political transition phase. He now has the task of temporarily continuing the current cabinet made up of conservative and Green ministers.

Schallenberg does not want to join the FPÖ government

The right-wing FPÖ won the election in the fall and relegated the previous chancellor’s party ÖVP to second place. After talks about a center government collapsed, it is now Kickl’s turn. ÖVP boss Christian Stocker wanted to comment on the next steps on Wednesday afternoon.

Foreign Minister Schallenberg is considered pro-European and supports the EU sanctions against belligerent Russia. Kickl, on the other hand, pursues an EU-critical and Moscow-friendly course. It is precisely in these areas that the FPÖ and ÖVP would have to overcome major differences in order to form a government.