The Austrian Government is recomposed after the resignation of Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, cornered by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office for its alleged involvement in crimes of fraud and bribes.
The successor of him will be the until now Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alexander Schallenberg, a career diplomat without just political experience, nearby ally of Kurz and like this, very hard on immigration.
Schallenberg has already met with the leader of the Greens and Vicecanciller, Werner Kogler, and today he did the same with the head of state, Alexander van der Bellen.
After his interview with the president, Schallenberg said he had a “huge challenge ahead that it will not be easy for anyone” and highlighted “the incredible degree of responsibility” that the country has shown.
For his part, Kogler congratulated himself before “the possibility of opening a new chapter in the work of the coalition government”, giving with it closed the crisis.
It remains ensured the continuity of the coalition between that of the Popular Party (ÖVP) and the Greens, and that was, apparently, the priority of Kurz, that of the politician that prevents the good of the country to his personal interests. Austrian analysts, however, see Kurz’s movement a medium and long-term strategy. The maneuver of it, even remembers some commentators to those of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who gave way to Dmitry Medvedev just to return the command again. That is the thesis that defends the Kronen Zeitung newspaper in an editorial, that of a Kurz that only arises from leaving office for a limited time. And he does it as he can only do a chancellor who aspires to be again: avoiding the motion of censorship that the opposition announced for Tuesday and that he would surely have lost. Without the departure of Kurz, the greens had supported the motion before the seriousness of the crimes for which the anti-corruption prosecutor (WKSTA) has opened an investigation against him and the closest circle of him.
He is accused of using criminal methods to take control of his party and later with the government.
He did it, apparently, since he entered the government as a Minister of Foreign Affairs, in 2016, financed media in exchange for favorable publishers and embellished surveys.
The method, as remembered editors headers of different Austrian newspapers is not a novelty.
Kurz has not been the first nor will he be the last political leader who is served through articles and advertising paid in the means to gain popularity and underpin the influence of him.
The problem of Kurz is that, allegedly, he did not invest in him with his pocket, but with taxpayer funds, through the Ministry of Finance.
The documents held by the Prosecutor’s Office collect payments to the Austria Group, the most important in the country, up to 1.3 million euros.
In the alleged operation of ascent to the power of Kurz participated, in addition to its closest collaborators, the former family minister, the Sociologists Sophie Karmasin and Sabine Beinschab and the Hubert and Wolgang Fellner brothers, owners of Media Group Austria.
To this conglomerate of media belong among others, the free newspaper Österreich, the television channel O224.TV, economic journals and for women, as well as a network of radio stations.
Form, as a whole, the largest communication group of Austria and one of the worst reputation has been carved by its sensationalism.
Kurz has defended the presumption of innocence in the 72 hours passed since the Prosecutor’s Office proceeded to the Chancellery Register, the Ministry of Finance and the ÖVP headquarters until its resignation.
The pressure, however, was unsustainable even for Kurz.
He had two options: resign and save himself from burning or going to the parliamentary slaughterhouse.
He chose the resignation because it allows him to retire without leaving.
Kurz stays as a leader of the ÖVP, maintains the government and maintains the power and visibility of him autonombered head of the parliamentary group.
He has all the tools in his hand, from the shadow, move the threads in the government.
The leader of the social democratic opposition, Pamela Rendi-Wagner, has no doubt that it will be.
“Kurz leaves the chancellery, but will continue, in the shade, being the chancellor,” “has declared Rendi-Wagner. Power in the shade, as Jaroslaw Kazcynski at the head of the Governmental Party Law and Justice (Pis) in Poland, as Putin
In Russia, despite all distances.
The parallelism of the Austrian media with Putin is interesting.
Putin became president to Prime Minister Medvedev in 2008-2012, to return later to the presidency.
A US diplomatic cable filtered at that time said that Medvedev “plays Robin for the Batman of Putin”.
Kurz has not mentioned a time limit for departure from the Foreign Ministry, since that will depend on the time you need the Prosecutor’s Office to determine with Tests, effectively, Falseo Surveys and a reputation in the media with public money was purchased, because that is the
True problem.
Kurz announced his resignation in a seven-minute speech, of which more than half went to reiterate his innocence and explain that he abandoned the government by responsibility with the country.
It was a consensus decision with the powerful regional leaders of ÖVP and between them Günther Platter, head of the Tyrolean government.
According to Platter, it was a correct decision.
The chancellor had to take a step on the side until the accusations and their against “, he stressed. Kurz will return.