Austria’s Chancellor to be Replaced by Foreign Minister, Schallenberg to Take Over
Austria’s Presidential Chancellery has confirmed that Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg will take over the role of Chancellor on a provisional basis from this Friday. Schallenberg will succeed Karl Nehammer, who stepped down after coalition talks failed over the weekend.
Schallenberg, who previously held the Chancellor’s office in a transition period in 2021, will in addition to his role as Foreign Minister, temporarily take on the administration of the Chancellor’s office and chair the government. The conservative-led caretaker government will remain in office until a new coalition is formed.
President Van der Bellen tasked FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl with forming a government on Monday, after talks for a center-led government failed.
Schallenberg, who has a clear pro-European stance, has announced he will not accept a ministerial position in an FPÖ-led government.
Nehammer will formally resign on Friday, while Christian Stocker has already taken over as the new acting leader of the ÖVP, the party’s successor within the party.