"He would do Europe good"

Vilimsky wants Orbán as Commission President

Harald Vilimsky would be delighted with Hungary's head of government Viktor Orbán as EU Commission President. The latter, of course, has no ambitions for the post.

(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH, AFP/Attila KISBENEDEK, Krone KREATIV)

It is well known that the FPÖ supports many of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's political ideas. Their sympathies apparently go so far that they now also want the right-wing conservative politician to run for President of the European Commission.

"I believe that he would do Europe good," said FPÖ EU lead candidate Harald Vilimsky in an interview with APA on Sunday. "He is the antithesis of the entire EU establishment. He is a guarantor that illegal migration of this intensity is not possible." Vilimsky clearly rejected the desire to leave the EU. The FPÖ wants European cooperation. "We only want to replace people because they bring the wrong content. We want to streamline the European Union, we want to bring powers back to the parliaments of the member states, so that we have more direct democracy again."

Abolish direct elections or not?
Vilimsky also denied that his party wanted to abolish direct elections to the European Parliament. "I don't know that I have spoken out in favor of this", he said. In February, however, following a corresponding proposal by Orbán, he said that it was "definitely worth considering". "This is no less democratic than a direct election, because the national parliaments are democratically elected anyway," Vilimsky argued at the time. "I have always said, let's halve this parliament," he said now. He cited the US House of Representatives with 435 members as a "reference figure". 

The EU Parliament in Brussels

(Bild: AFP/Frederik FLORIN)

Vilimsky also called for a faithful interpretation of the EU Treaty of Lisbon, which stipulates a maximum size of two thirds of the member states (18 commissioners), just as little as 720 MEPs are needed for "27 commissioners to maltreat the continent".

Nevertheless, Vilimsky claimed the right to nominate the Austrian EU Commissioner if the FPÖ were to become the strongest party in the European elections. In this regard, he drew a comparison with the appointment of the President of the National Council. "We advocate continuing this tradition of the strongest party having the right of nomination and the others accepting this as far as possible," he said. 

EU veteran Harald Vilimsky, who is already running for his third term in office, is open to taking on a "key role" within the right-wing populist group "Identity and Democracy" (ID) in the future. "If the call came my way to be part of a leadership team, I would be happy to do so."

(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH)

Vilimsky indignantly rejected the accusation of a Russian bias persistently raised by his political opponents and referred to his close and active contacts in the USA. "I see myself in the Austrian tradition in the middle of the fields of power," he emphasized. He does not want to shake neutrality. Austria should not come to the military aid of an attacked EU member state. "We are neutral. We cannot go to war," he made clear.

Criticism of "knocking letter to NATO"
The blue EU election campaigner criticized the defence activities of the Turkish-Green federal government, in particular the "knocking letter to NATO" and participation in Sky Shield. He sees no scenario in which Austria would be threatened by missile attacks and emphasized the importance of Austrian neutrality as an instrument of defence. Neutral countries would hardly ever be drawn into conflicts.

NEOS: "Anyone who promotes Orbán is promoting corruption"
NEOS top candidate Helmut Brandstätter was alarmed by Vilimsky's wishes. "Following Orbán's example", the FPÖ wants to "abolish liberal democracy in Austria and Europe". The pink politician recalled the analysis of Hungary expert Paul Lendvai, who considers Hungary under Orbán to be "the most corrupt country in Europe". "Anyone who promotes the Orbán model is promoting corruption and a crony economy," warned Brandstätter. Vice-Chancellor Werner Kogler took a similar line. Vilimsky's proposal was "highly dangerous", wrote the Green Party leader on his X-page (see above for both postings).