The president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, and the president of the European Parliament, Antonio Tajani, gave unanimous backing to Sebastian Kurz, who was sworn in as the new Austrian chancellor on Monday 18 December (see EUROPE 11928) during his first visit to Brussels on 19 and 20 December.
On Tuesday evening, Juncker repeatedly told reporters of the new Austrian coalition government’s pro-European programme, even going as far as saying he was virtually 100% satisfied with it. Austria will hold the rotating six-month presidency of the EU in the second half of 2018.
The president of the European Commission did not express any fears about the involvement of the far-right FPÖ party in the Austrian government, preferring to say that he would assess the government on facts without making any preconceptions.
Earlier in the evening, Tusk met the new chancellor and said he had ‘no doubt’ that Austria would remain a reliable partner at EU level. Similar comments were made by Antonio Tajani, who met Kurz on Wednesday 20 December. The president of the European Parliament said it was very positive that Kurz had chosen Brussels for his first foreign visit. He tweeted that he was sure that Austria, with Kurz at the helm, would remain ‘at the heart of Europe.’
The presidents of the European Commission, European Council and Parliament are part of the Christian Democrats (EPP), the same political grouping, as Kurz.
The head of the Austrian government said he wanted Austria to remain a very active member state in order to shape Europe and called for a strengthening of subsidiarity. In terms of content, the new Austrian chancellor called for more secure EU external borders and for a clampdown on illegal migration as a precondition for achieving a border-free Europe. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)