Othmar Karas, First Vice-President of the European Parliament (ÖVP), will retire from European politics in July after handing over his office. Nevertheless, he will remain politically active. Above all, ‘cohesion in the middle’ is important to him. He looks at the upcoming EU elections “with skepticism and concern”, as he says in the krone.tv interview with Jana Pasching.
A new start is needed in Austrian European policy because “the future of Austria is closely linked to the future of Europe.” It is about the issue of “liberal democracy and minority protection” or “autocracy that centralizes and nationalizes.” According to Karas, extremes have no solutions: “Extremes only shift the blame.” But people have a good sense of whether someone is sincere and willing to take responsibility, or whether tactics are key.
Disappointment with migration policy
Karas is disappointed that “we have not achieved a common asylum and migration policy since the large influx of refugees in 2015. This is a failure.” This failure includes not only the institutions in Brussels, but also the Member States. “The will for a European asylum and migration pact is lacking.”
He responded cautiously to rumors about whether Karas would run for next year’s National Council elections – perhaps with his own list or with a party like NEOS: “There are usually more rumors than facts.”
“I have enough to do”
There is still a lot of work to be done before the end of his mandate: “We are facing very big decisions, such as migration, climate, war, democratic developments, which sometimes worry me because we are becoming more and more autocratic and there is less and less receive popular consent for our decisions. I will dedicate myself completely to this until the last day. I have enough to do.”
You can see the entire interview with Othmar Karas in the video above.
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Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
