It started on Tuesday with ÖVP leader Karl Nehammer and election winner Herbert Kickl (FPÖ). The specific content and location of the meeting remained secret for the time being. Following the talks, Nehammer appeared in front of the press and reiterated his “no” to a coalition with Kickl. He didn’t want to play the “stirrup holder for the FP boss,” Nehammer sharpened his tone.
In the run-up to today’s meeting, neither the ÖVP nor the FPÖ wanted to announce where the meeting would take place. Information from several media representatives that the two could meet in parliament turned out to be false. Shortly before 2 p.m., Kickl was seen getting into a car in front of the FPÖ club premises on Reichsratsstrasse. The FPÖ only told the journalists who were waiting in vain that the meeting was taking place “in Vienna” and would last “as long as it takes”. After the talks, the party leaders should report to Van der Bellen what cooperation would be possible.
“Candy coalition” most likely
The next meeting tomorrow is likely to follow a similar principle, then Nehammer and SPÖ leader Andreas Babler will explore the possibilities of cooperation. The most likely coalition variant besides black-blue is currently the “sweetheart” coalition – which Kickl calls the “losers’ coalition” – consisting of ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS, but the black-red overhang of just one mandate requires a third partner in terms of real politics. There will also be discussions in this direction in the coming days: NEOS boss Beate Meinl-Reisinger will meet the Chancellor on Wednesday, and the SPÖ boss on Thursday, a spokesman confirmed a corresponding article in the “Presse”. There will also be “no communication” about these discussions.
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The last meeting will be between Kickl and Babler on Thursday. A coalition with the Freedom Party was repeatedly ruled out by the SPÖ. Van der Bellen has not yet given any party a mandate to form a government. The Federal President explained that he did not allow the FPÖ to have a say for the time being because it was a “classic stalemate” since it was an election winner with whom none of the other parties apparently wanted to govern. Kickl claims to be chancellor and wants to form a coalition with the ÖVP, but the People’s Party does not want to join him. The three party leaders should now “clarify reliably what cooperation would be conceivable” by the end of the week.