ADVERTISEMENTThe European Union is expected to maintain sanctions against Russia and diversify its energy supplies, because Moscow uses energy as a means of blackmail, said Austian Chancellor Christian Store in an exclusive interview with Euronews.
During a discussion on the sidelines of the PPE congress in Valence, Christian Stocker, who directs a coalition of three parties, said that the EU had to make the difference between Russia and Putin and prepare for the future when President Vladimir Putin will no longer be in power.
“Russia is not reduced to Putin,” said Christian Stocker. “It is extremely difficult to deal with Putin, but Russia will always be there when it is no longer in power. For the moment, we consider Russia as a threat, including for Austria, because of its destabilization actions and its disinformation campaigns targeting Western democracies. For the moment, Russia is not a partner. But this will not always be the case, the leaders do not remain forever in power. »»
Christian Stocker added that it was too early to speak of a softening of the economic sanctions imposed on Russia, given that a possible ceasefire in Ukraine is not for the moment on the agenda. He considers that any peace agreement must respect the conditions set by Ukraine.
“This is not something I see for the moment, even if I would be happy,” he said about a truce. “But no ceasefire or peace agreement should be imposed. Ukraine must define the conditions under which peace can be established. From what I can see, Putin is not interested in this for the moment. If a peace agreement is concluded, the EU will then decide its position. In the meantime, the sanctions must be maintained. »»
The Chancellor also stressed the need to further reduce EU’s energy dependence on Russia. The European Commission is studying projects aimed at completely dissociating Europe from Russian energy imports.
“We have learned at our expense that it is not prudent to be as dependent on a single supplier, especially when energy becomes a blackmail tool,” he said. “This is why we diversify our energy sources and become independent of Russian gas. The key question is that of dependence, and it is clear now that this dependence was neither a good policy nor a lasting solution. We will end it. »»
Neutral, but rearmed
Christian Stocker also declared that he was supporting the new rearmament plans of Europe as the safety guarantees of the post-cold era are fading.
“For a long time, we had the illusion that war belonged to the past in Europe,” he told Euronews. “I was born in 1960, after the war. The destroyed houses had already been rebuilt and I grew up thinking that the war would never return to Europe. We have designed our defense systems according to this conviction. But today we see that this is a received idea. We must therefore rethink our defense, more effectively and with more responsibilities.
-Austria participates in the joint EU defense equipment acquisition program.
“We are militarily neutral, but that does not mean that we will not invest in our defense,” said Christian Store. “On the contrary, we double our defense expenses to bring them to 2 % of GDP. We have already increased the budget considerably in recent years. We invest in our defense within the framework of our neutrality. »»
But unlike Sweden or Finland, Austria does not plan to join NATO.
“Membership of NATO is not on the agenda in Austria, both for reasons of neutrality and because we are trying to effectively manage our defense expenses,” said Christian Storing.
“For example, the Sky Shield acquisition platform is not an initiative of the EU, but of Europe, of which Switzerland is a part. It allows us to buy systems profitably and guarantee their compliance, while leaving command and deployment decisions entirely in the hands of Austrians. »»
Migrants without rights must leave
Regarding immigration, the Chancellor Stocker said that the European pact on migration was a big step in the right direction, but he added that Brussels should act now.
ADVERTISEMENT“We do not want to adopt an approach like that of Trump, which consists in” building a wall “, but we need a solid and safe external border, which is properly monitored and where asylum procedures take place directly on the border. This is a key element. The second is to provide secure third countries in which people can be returned. »»
The chancellor added that 100 % of migrants who are not allowed to stay in Europe should leave.
“We want people who do not have the right to stay in Austria or Europe to leave the country. We have heard that only 20 % of people without a residence permit returned to their country, which is simply not enough. We have to reach 100 %. Even if we do not get there completely, it must remain our goal. »»
