“We are facing a completely new scenario in Europe and probably the world,” said former SPÖ chancellor Franz Vranitzky on Saturday evening in a ZiB2 special on the war in Ukraine. From this “we have to draw the consequences”. What is meant is that the Europeans would have to reflect on “thinking about and implementing a new order”. A united Europe is important. But: “The ideal form of a united Europe does not exist.”
“No Walk”
As far as the Western sanctions against Russia are concerned, one has to expect that they will have a retroactive effect “on our systems”. “It’s not a walk in the park, it’s a very difficult structural cut.”
With regard to the past in Austria, he noted that the “general spokesman” was that not so much money should be put into the army. He doesn’t want to set up an Austrian army to go into the field against Russia – but an armed unit. Neutrality is always brought into play here, according to the former chancellor. “But we can also participate in joint security activities as a neutral state.” For example, he never understood why the federal army “went away from the Golan”. He thinks of a well-fortified European army.
Hope for Schroeder
When asked whether Austria’s relations with Russia and Putin – keyword wedding dance between former Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl and Putin – were too close, Vranitzky replied: He had “reservations about the participants in the discussion”, who are now under the impression of the current Events explain “that they always knew everything anyway”.
As for former German SPD chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who maintains close economic ties with Russia, Vranitzky said: “I have a faint hope” that Schroeder would not advise anyone to end business ties. “But he will do it himself.” Postscript: “If he doesn’t, I was wrong.” Among other things, Schröder is chairman of the supervisory board of the Russian state energy company Rosneft.