For the first time since the end of World War II, Austria’s far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) was asked to form a government after the failed coalition negotiations between the conservative, social-democratic, and liberal parties and the resulting resignation of Karl Nehammer, chancellor and leader of the conservative People’s Party (ÖVP).
Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen charged the leader of the FPÖ, Herbert Kickl, with attempting to form a new government only three months after declaring that Kickl had no partner for a future government.
“It wasn’t an easy step for me,” admitted Van der Bellen in a short statement to the press after meeting with Kickl, “I will go on monitoring so that the principles and rules of our constitution will be respected and kept in all correctness.” Kickl himself is expected to speak to the public on Tuesday.
Kickl led the FPÖ to a historic victory in the last general election on September 29. It was the first time the FPÖ – founded in 1956 by a mixture of former Nazis, German nationals (who considered Austria as part of Germany), and national-liberals – won a general election.
However, since the other political parties in Austria consider the FPÖ as being anti-democratic, anti-constitutional, authoritarian, and connected with extreme rightists and neo-Nazis, Kickl couldn’t find any coalition partner after the election. The resigning chancellor, Nehammer, didn’t exclude forming a government with the FPÖ but categorically rejected Kickl’s nomination as chancellor.
The personal animosity between Nehammer and Kickl, both former interior ministers, blocked the way to forming a far-right/conservative government in Austria. Nehammer’s resignation may lift some major obstacles preventing Kickl from becoming the first far-right Austrian chancellor.
Nehammer’s replacement, Christian Stocker, announced on Sunday that his party is willing to enter negotiations with the FPÖ on forming a new government, stressing that Austria urgently needs a stable government that would tackle the growing economic crisis in the country and can’t afford a new election.
However, officials of the ÖVP emphasized that they will not “sell their soul” in future negotiations and will insist on respecting their party’s core values and principles.
Both parties could reach a quick agreement on major issues such as limiting immigration to Austria, accelerating the return of refugees to their homelands, and strengthening internal security and control at the borders. Additionally, reforms necessary for the revival of economic growth in Austria might be another terrain of agreement between both parties.
Dispute on foreign and national security policies
HOWEVER, one of the main disputes between both parties is on foreign and national security policies. Kickl wants to renew the Austrian tradition of neutrality to “promote peace.” Returning to such a position would affect Austria’s support to Ukraine and might also change the pro-Israel stand Austria has adopted since the chancellorship of the conservative Sebastian Kurz.
Israel is still boycotting the FPÖ because of its ties to the extreme right and neo-Nazi elements in Austria. In doing so, Israel is siding with the Austrian Jewish community, whose leadership accuses the FPÖ leaders and members of being “underground Nazis,” or as Ariel Muzicant, the president of the European Jewish Congress and former head of the Austrian Jewish community, puts it, “cellar Nazis.”
If Kickl succeeds in forming a government and becoming chancellor, he will be the first Austrian prime minister coming from a far-right party with Nazi historical roots. This does not mean that the FPÖ is a neo-Nazi party, but it still has problematic ideological elements in its ranks, similar to Giorgia Meloni’s post-fascist Brothers of Italy.
“Unfortunately, we have now in Austria the same development that we see all over Europe, which is the arrival to power of the ultra-rights, and the possibility that Kickl will become a chancellor”, Muzicant told The Jerusalem Post. “The only difference is that Austria and Germany are the countries of the perpetrators.
“The grandchildren of the perpetrators follow to a large extent the same ideology of their grandparents. In 1933, the Nazis came to power not because they won the absolute majority in the election but because the conservatives and the industry barons brought Hitler to power.
“Kickl is not Hitler, and 2025 is not 1933,” Muzicant continued. “However, the basic political developments are very similar. In Austria, we have people that spread Nazi ideas, including many of the FPÖ officials. We registered 225 such cases in the last 10 years.
“We informed the Israelis about them, the Foreign Affairs Ministry, and the Speaker of the Knesset. We showed them that in Austria and Germany, we are not only facing extreme-right ideas but antisemitic extreme-right ideas existing among the officials of the FPÖ and [one of Germany’s leading parties] the Alternative for Germany. Not [only] among those who vote for those parties, [but the party members themselves]. Forty percent of the FPÖ are ‘cellar Nazis.’
“Therefore, there is a huge difference if you compare Austria to Italy, Holland, or Hungary, where far-right parties are [the] ruling parties. For many Jews in Europe, these political developments are a problem. Many European Jews will have to decide if they want to go on living in Europe under these circumstances.”
Critical of the EU
THE FPÖ is also very critical of the EU. As a founding member of the Patriots for Europe group, uniting right-wing parties in the European Parliament, which want to block all efforts to transform the EU into a federal super-state.
The FPÖ might use its influence as a possible ruling party for this purpose, while the ÖVP is profoundly pro-EU. The FPÖ also opposes the participation of Austria in Europe’s Sky Shield defense program, approved by the previous government led by the ÖVP.
Kickel, 56, is the son of a working-class family who studied philosophy and history at the University of Vienna but didn’t complete his studies. He joined the FPÖ in his 20s and quickly became a very close assistant to the party’s former leader, Jörg Haider.
After Haider left the FPÖ to form his own party, Kickl stayed behind and advanced himself to the mastermind behind the rise of the FPÖ to the leading political force in Austria today and its first victory in the recent general elections.
As Kickl seeks to dismantle the grip of the two old main established parties of Austria – the social-democrats and the conservatives that have ruled Austria for most of the time since the end of World War II – he is seen as having an authoritarian worldview and, therefore, raises in Austria and around Europe serious concerns.
Added to that is the fact that Kickl sees himself as the successor of the antisemitic Haider and, as such, fulfilling Haider’s dream of coming to power “in the name of the people.”
In the last election, Kickl presented himself as the “People’s Chancellor.” On his Facebook account, Kickl published a video showing him coming to meet with President Van der Bellen with the title “First the people, then the Chancellor.”
His arrival at the president’s palace was accompanied by protesters waving signs saying, among others, “We have learned lessons from our history.” The one-hour meeting between Van der Bellen and Kickl took place under heavy police presence around the presidential palace.
This is Kickl’s big moment: Will he know how to act in a way that will advance Austria’s interests? Or, will he act irresponsibly as he did while serving as interior minister and destroying the reputation of Austria’s intelligence agency by ordering an investigation against it based on false accusations?
Will he be able to adopt the extensive and necessary economic reforms needed to get Austria out of a deep economic crisis and threatening recession? Will he break away from extremist ideas and elements or promote them? And, most importantly for us, will he know how to find ways for constructive dialogue with the Jewish community and Israel?