Especially at the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen had to tolerate criticism of his previous attitude towards Putin. In a major interview, he now reveals how his political position turned around: he was simply wrong about the Russian ruler.
On Wednesday, the Federal President admitted in an interview with Spiegel that he had misjudged Putin. “I admit I was wrong about Putin. I thought he would be satisfied with the inexcusable, illegal annexation of Crimea and access to land there. “Sorry, completely wrong assessment,” said Van der Bellen.
Political position now clear
“Putin is an aggressor,” the federal president said. The Russian president lives in the 18th century. “There’s an anecdote where people ask, ‘Do you know anyone who Putin still listens to?’ Answer: ‘Of course – to Ivan the Terrible, to Peter the Great and to Catherine the Great.’ “Russia must literally be big in Putin’s eyes, so that he can take himself seriously as a leader,” Van der Bellen continued.
When asked why Austria had filled Putin’s war chest by purchasing ten billion euros of Russian natural gas since 2022, the federal president said he was aware of the problem. “We are working to change that.”
Van der Bellen: ‘We must learn to defend ourselves’
In any case, the united Europe is held together by the realization that “27 global political dwarfs can only defend their interests as a union,” Van der Bellen continued. Ironically, Putin himself pointed out in Sochi in 2019 that “the EU states together spend five times as much on the military as Russia. And the Americans even have three times more than all EU countries. “He wasn’t far wrong,” said the federal president.
Everyone underestimated the fragmentation of the European arms industry. “The EU finds it difficult to leave positions of pure soft power. We must learn to defend ourselves,” the Federal President emphasized.
The president sees positive trends in Europe
Nevertheless, Van der Bellen warned against overly gloomy predictions about the European Union. “In 2016, some of your colleagues said that I could no longer win against the FPÖ candidate Norbert Hofer, that the first stone would fall, that Emmanuel Macron would lose in France, and so on. None of that happened.”
In addition, Van der Bellen believes that the elections in Poland and Slovenia have been very encouraging, despite the election victory of a Russia-friendly government in Slovakia and the government of Viktor Orbán in Hungary, which describes itself as an opponent of liberal democracy. “I believe that this united Europe will reflect on its strengths in times of need. If it wants to. So that it guarantees peace and prosperity for its citizens.”
EU no “loose combination of 27 allotments”
Regarding Italy, the Federal President explained that Giorgia Meloni not only thinks transatlantic and is against Putin and the war in Ukraine, but also knows how important Brussels, that is to say the EU, is for Italy. Still, it is important to be vigilant. In principle, Van der Bellen said that he had nothing against a two-speed Europe.
“What I don’t want: for the EU to see itself as a loose combination of 27 allotments. Above all, we need a common foreign and defense policy.”
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.
