“The security situation in Europe has changed dramatically,” said German Chancellor Karl Nehammer on Friday, addressing the press after his meeting with the Security Council, which he called in response to the Russian attack on Ukraine. In a haunting speech, the Chancellor addressed the Austrian population and made his point of view on Russia’s aggression, the EU’s sanctions and the growing uncertainty among the population about the possible effects of the Ukraine war on Austria clear.
Nehammer made no secret of the fact that he viewed Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine as a violation of international law and condemned it in the strongest possible terms. “It’s war. No one would have thought that in 21st century Europe one country could invade another country like that. The military aggression paints a terrible picture,” said Nehammer. It is now a matter of protecting the people who live in Austria as best as possible.
“We have an interlocutor opposite who has guns in both hands,” said Nehammer, who made it clear with these words that he believed that Russia was not ready to conduct a dialogue. Nehammer’s thoughts are with the 44 million people who live in Ukraine and who, as he says, are now suffering for no reason: “It is a breach of international law and an all-encompassing war. Civilians are threatened, children, women, men and the elderly suffer. Ukraine is experiencing one of its most difficult hours,” emphasized Nehammer, who is “stunned” by the situation in Ukraine.
On Thursday evening, the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj addressed the EU Council online and described the drama of the situation in his country again. “We were stunned, but we are not helpless,” said Nehammer.
Therefore, the EU, as a community of democratic states, has unanimously decided on a comprehensive package of sanctions. According to Nehammer, this will also be very painful for the member states in economic matters. “But that’s nothing compared to the pain Ukraine is going through.”
The package will “cut massively into the Russian economy”, for example in transport and in the aviation industry, explained Nehammer. For example, there are no longer any spare parts for Russian air traffic. Sanctions were also passed for the financial sector. This affects 70 percent of Russian banks. The freedom of travel for oligarchs is restricted. According to Nehammer, there will no longer be any diplomatic passports or service passports for Russians that are not subject to verification.
Austria plays a special role in the situation. “We are militarily neutral, but not to values and international law. Nothing can justify the Ukraine war. If you don’t respect international law, you don’t respect neutrality either.”
