Blue-black burst

FPÖ issues ultimatum, ÖVP blocks talks

Herbert Kickl and Christian Hafenecker pack up.

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER / APA / picturedesk.com)

The bumpy negotiations between the Freedom Party and the ÖVP lasted a month. Now Austria is without a government. The budget is up in the air. An indictment of the Republic. Read about the most important events of the day in our live ticker.

What happened on Wednesday?

• The formation of a blue-black government has failed. After a long back and forth, Herbert Kickl has resigned. The Freedom Party leader blamed the ÖVP for the failure. The People's Party had lacked "courage", but he still thanked Christian Stocker. Rapid new elections were now "appropriate".
• Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen stated on Wednesday evening that "everyone lacked humility". He will now hold talks with all parties involved in order to find "compromises". There will be no new elections for the time being. 
• The main sticking point was the distribution of portfolios, with the FPÖ insisting on the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Finance. A proposal by the ÖVP to outsource the asylum departments was rejected by the Blue Party. 
• ÖVP leader Christian Stocker emphasized that Kickl had not emerged from the role of opposition politician. The "FPÖ chapter" is now closed.

Kickl wants to remain true to his principles. Otherwise "the chancellor would be worth nothing".

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

The most important events in the live ticker:

What happens now? 
Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen will hold further talks with the party leaders on Thursday. Following the collapse of the blue-black coalition negotiations on Wednesday, the head of state has invited the party leaders to his office to sound out what a future government could look like. At least NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger, SPÖ leader Andreas Babler and Green Party leader Werner Kogler are expected in the Hofburg on Thursday.

There are four options
The Federal President had announced that he would meet with the party leaders in the coming days. In a statement on Wednesday, he spoke of four options following the failure of the blue-black coalition: a new election, a minority government with parliamentary acquiescence, a government of experts or a coalition of several parties. However, the parties also want to discuss the future internally - while the ÖVP had already convened a federal party committee on Wednesday, the Social Democrats will meet in parliament on Thursday for a presidium meeting.