Austria's recent domestic political perturbations did not affect Vienna's relations with Moscow, Russia's Ambassador to Austria Dmitry Lyubinsky told Sputnik on Thursday
VIENNA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th December, 2019) Austria's recent domestic political perturbations did not affect Vienna's relations with Moscow, Russia's Ambassador to Austria Dmitry Lyubinsky told Sputnik on Thursday.
"This year was not easy for Austria, but the internal political instability did not negatively affect Russian-Austrian relations ... We are actively working on the implementation of joint projects in the economy, energy and infrastructure, in the cultural and historical spheres, we are strengthening public relations and the regional cooperation," Lyubinsky said.
The ambassador also said that the Russian and Austrian authorities regularly hold discussions, adding that Moscow was willing to cooperate with the current interim Austrian government, headed by caretaker Chancellor Brigitte Bierlein.
"Together with our Austrian partners, we have a great joint agenda, and we firmly believe that the new Austrian government will continue its consistent implementation, regardless of its future political affiliation," he said.
In May, then Vice-Chancellor and leader of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), Heinz-Christian Strache, was forced to resign from both posts due to a leaked 2017 video featuring him discussing a deal with an alleged niece of a Russian oligarch at a villa on the Spanish island of Ibiza. The woman was later revealed to be a Bosnian student who was paid for the setup.
The so-called Ibiza scandal led to major cabinet reshuffles and forced Kurz to withdraw his party from its coalition with the FPO and call snap elections, while the former chancellor himself was dismissed following a no-confidence vote. Early parliamentary elections were held in Austria on September 29. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs' final data, Kurz's Austrian People's Party (OVP) won with 37.5 percent of the vote. In November, Kurz announced that OVP would begin negotiations on forming a coalition government with the Green Party.
