Coalition: More Clarity Expected After Kickl's Visit to Vienna's Hofburg
The tension between FPÖ and ÖVP escalated further on Thursday. Whether the coalition negotiations will continue or be broken off is unclear. After the recent escalation over who gets which ministries, the ÖVP stated that they had sent a counterproposal to the FPÖ - the FPÖ denies this. FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl had an appointment with Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen in the afternoon.
Kickl's Visit to Federal President Van der Bellen Brings No More Clarity
The FPÖ leader arrived at the Hofburg shortly before 2:00 PM on Thursday. He drove up by car and did not make a statement to the waiting journalists. After a good hour, the party leader left the presidential office again, also without comment. The content of the conversation did not initially become public. Whether there will be a statement afterwards was initially unclear. The FPÖ had hoped for more clarity from the conversation on how to proceed. After all, they currently do not know what the ÖVP plans to do and what ÖVP leader Christian Stocker discussed with the president on Wednesday, according to blue negotiating circles to the APA.
ÖVP Talks of Counteroffer in Dispute Over Ministry Allocation
The topic was likely the deadlock in the coalition negotiations. The proposal for the distribution of ministries presented by Kickl on Tuesday is "unacceptable" for the People's Party according to ÖVP circles, does not correspond to the election result, and is therefore not on equal terms. Therefore, after internal consultation on Wednesday, a counterproposal was submitted to the Freedom Party, which "can gladly be discussed at the negotiating table if Herbert Kickl wants to continue the talks he interrupted."
This portrayal by the ÖVP angered the FPÖ on Thursday. It was denied to the APA that a counteroffer from the ÖVP had been received. There was only an "atmospheric conversation between two members of the chief negotiating group" on Wednesday - it is said not to involve the party leaders - nothing more. They are still waiting for a response from the ÖVP to the list presented by Kickl. Furthermore, the FPÖ indignantly denied having interrupted the negotiations on Tuesday, as the People's Party claimed. Kickl had submitted the list to Stocker, Stocker then announced internal consultations and left.
Dispute Over Ministry Allocation Escalated on Tuesday
The small meeting with the party leaders that took place on Tuesday was actually supposed to discuss unresolved substantive issues - but relatively quickly it turned to the distribution of ministries. The FPÖ claims departments that are also particularly important to the ÖVP - such as finance and interior, but also European affairs. Consequently, they parted ways quite angrily late Tuesday afternoon, with the ÖVP speaking of a "difficult phase." Since then, there has reportedly been radio silence between the party leaders, even though subgroups continued negotiations on Wednesday. The mood further deteriorated when Kickl reinforced the FPÖ's claim to the finance and interior departments via Facebook on Wednesday - the ÖVP expressed "surprise" at this.
Silence on Meeting Between Stocker and Van der Bellen
On Wednesday afternoon, Stocker had an appointment with Van der Bellen. What was discussed there remains hidden. The ÖVP did not confirm the appointment, nor did the presidential office disclose any content of the conversation. The Hofburg also remained silent about the meeting - it was said to be "confidential talks," according to the APA on Thursday. Currently, there are no plans for the head of state to comment on the current situation.
Substantive Sticking Points Also Open
The allocation of positions was not the only open point in the negotiations recently. According to APA information, essential points in the subgroups are marked "red," especially those related to foreign policy or media, but also partially in the areas of finance and taxes. The chief negotiators are supposed to address these unresolved issues, but progress seems to have been limited so far.
There still appears to be no movement from either side on the bank levy demanded by the Freedom Party. The turquoise economic wing is also likely to oppose a financial contribution from the chambers to budget consolidation. Additional points of contention include the FPÖ's desired abolition of the ORF household levy, the Sky Shield missile defense system, and a unified stance on European policy.
(APA/Red)
This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.