With everyone except the FPÖ
Round table on Ukraine: “Could do more”
Three years after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, support for the country remains a key issue in Austrian politics. To mark the anniversary, a "Ukraine Roundtable" was held in parliament with representatives from the SPÖ, ÖVP, Greens and NEOS, the Ukrainian ambassador and experts from Ukraine Aid and the Ministry of the Interior - only the FPÖ did not want to take part.
Austria's previous aid measures, further support options and geopolitical developments were discussed. What role can and should Austria play in the future?
For the Ukrainian ambassador to Austria, Dr. Vasyl Khymynets, Austria's military neutrality in Ukraine is respected, but this does not mean that Austria can be neutral in the matter.
Khymynets: "In these difficult times like today, for example in winter, when people and cities are being bombed ... We very much hope that Austria will continue to help us. And that will also be part of our common history."
David Stögmüller, the Greens' spokesperson for national defense and development cooperation, also believes that Austria should provide humanitarian aid in Ukraine: "Imagine young boys fighting in the war. And then they come back and have to be socialized again in a normal environment. They need psychological support. There are hundreds, thousands of people on a waiting list in Ukraine to receive prostheses. Austria has the expertise. We are already helping. And of course we can do a lot more and expand."
SPÖ Member of the National Council Petra Bayr emphasizes the importance of setting an example. Bayr: "It is incredibly important not to forget what is happening right on our doorstep. That thousands of people are still dying there, on the front line."
She continued: "I believe that we have to be prepared, also as Austria, for the fact that even if peace is achieved with the involvement of the European Union and Ukraine, we will probably be dealing with the long-term consequences of this war for decades."
For Andreas Minnich of the People's Party, Austria should continue its traditional role of diplomacy and contribute to peace mediation: "With the OSCE and UN headquarters in Vienna, I believe that we have the best conditions to help create a positive and hopefully honest peace. Ukraine must certainly not be ignored in the peace negotiations. Of course, there will be no peace without America. We have already discussed this here today. We also need strong security guarantees. Europe will have to play its part to the maximum. But there will be no getting around America either."
Cornelius Granig, President of Ukraine-Hilfe Östereich, suggests setting up a separate office for Ukrainian reconstruction in Austria, as the current special envoy in the Foreign Ministry is not sufficient: "We could coordinate aid measures for the Ukrainians who are here in Austria and also provide massive support for those who are active in the economy, so that they can work on future projects where the Austrian economy is active in Ukraine."
The discussion made it clear that Austria continues to see itself called upon to make its contribution to supporting Ukraine - be it through humanitarian aid, economic cooperation or diplomatic initiatives.
This article has been automatically translated,
read the original article here.
Kommentare
Willkommen in unserer Community! Eingehende Beiträge werden geprüft und anschließend veröffentlicht. Bitte achten Sie auf Einhaltung unserer Netiquette und AGB. Für ausführliche Diskussionen steht Ihnen ebenso das krone.at-Forum zur Verfügung. Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.
User-Beiträge geben nicht notwendigerweise die Meinung des Betreibers/der Redaktion bzw. von Krone Multimedia (KMM) wieder. In diesem Sinne distanziert sich die Redaktion/der Betreiber von den Inhalten in diesem Diskussionsforum. KMM behält sich insbesondere vor, gegen geltendes Recht verstoßende, den guten Sitten oder der Netiquette widersprechende bzw. dem Ansehen von KMM zuwiderlaufende Beiträge zu löschen, diesbezüglichen Schadenersatz gegenüber dem betreffenden User geltend zu machen, die Nutzer-Daten zu Zwecken der Rechtsverfolgung zu verwenden und strafrechtlich relevante Beiträge zur Anzeige zu bringen (siehe auch AGB). Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.