“It doesn’t matter whether it’s Milan or Madrid – the main thing is Italy.” – This quote from former German footballer Andreas Möller was revived on Thursday by judge Michael Radasztics at the trial of Sebastian Kurz over an alleged false statement to the Ibiza investigative committee.
This was preceded by a dispute between witness Gernot Blümel and public prosecutor Gregor Adamovic. Former VP Minister Blümel had repeatedly mistakenly referred to Adamovic as “State Secretary” during the argument, whereupon Judge Radasztics called on both sides to show moderation and was able to lighten the mood at least for a moment with the sentence “Prosecutor or State Secretary – the main thing is Italy.”
The point of contention between Blümel and the representatives of the Economic and Corruption Public Prosecutor’s Office (WKStA) was the fact that, on the advice of his lawyer, Blümel wanted to refrain from testifying on questions relating to the turquoise-blue government’s side letter on post appointments in order not to incriminate himself. After a heated discussion, Blümel was granted this by the judge.
Personalities were often discussed, and there were certainly agreements with the FPÖ – at least Blümel was open to this statement.
Ex-Chancellor Kurz (like his former head of cabinet Bernhard Bonelli) is accused by the WKStA of having made false statements to the Ibiza investigative committee about his influence on appointments to positions, for example in the state holding company ÖBAG. When it came to the core question of whether Kurz Personalia had a say or not, Blümel – like witnesses before him – remained vague. There was constant discussion, he said again and again about the appointments. Ultimately, the decision was a matter for the respective minister. According to Blümel, he also made his own decisions: “Stop, stop.”
Permanent state of emergency
When asked several questions, Blümel stated that he had “no 100%” or “no concrete” recollection. This also applied to the question of whether ex-VP Finance Minister Hartwig Löger had consulted with Kurz on personnel issues.
Blümel explained his incomplete memory with the sentence: “Life in the federal government is life in a constantly felt state of emergency.” Löger had already referred to, among other things, a “memory dilemma” in his testimony in the short trial.
Right at the beginning of his questioning, Blümel made it clear that he was still good friends with Sebastian Kurz: “We are still closely connected to each other today.” The relationship with Thomas Schmid – former Secretary General in the Ministry of Finance and later ÖBAG board member – looks somewhat different, even though they once worked closely together professionally. After all: “We wished each other a happy birthday last time.”
Thomas Schmid is a key figure in the allegations against Kurz. He had testified extensively in several proceedings before the WKStA and is seeking star witness status. According to Schmid, Kurz played a crucial role in personnel matters.
Schmid “was annoying”
Blümel interpreted one of the most famous chat messages to Schmid after he had finalized the ÖBAG law (“You are family”): “We have known each other for a long time, don’t worry.” Schmid often “poked at different people and was annoying.”
At that time he wanted to know whether there was good or bad news. He could not say whether Blümel had actually consulted with Kurz at the time.
