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Dayna R Robison  09/20/2006 11:06:02 AM  From  DB/Inbox:  Dayna R Robison

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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENNA 002749 
 
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TAGS: KPAO AU OPRC
 
SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: September 14, 2006 
 
 
Conspiracy Seen in Floettl Case 
 
¶1. The leader of the opposition Social Democrats (SPOe), Alfred 
Gusenbauer, says he suspects a government plot to discredit his 
party ahead of next month's elections is behind allegations made by 
Wolfgang Floettl, one of those at the center of the Bawag bank 
scandal. The SPOe has denied Floettl's claims that he gave the party 
money in the late 1990s. 
According to semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung, Gusenbauer says 
Floettl may have made the claim in order to receive a lighter 
punishment on charges tied to his speculative business dealings in 
the Caribbean, which are thought to have cost bank Bawag more than 
one billion Euros. There have also been media reports that Floettl 
left documents related to his deals for Bawag in a safe in 
Bratislava. Wolfgang Floettl also reportedly met in the Slovakian in 
July with representatives from the Austrian State Prosecutor's 
Office and the financial market authority, which oversees the 
Austrian banking system 
 
One in Three Voters Undecided 
 
¶2. With less than three weeks to go until the October 1 general 
election in Austria, surveys show the number of undecided voters is 
exceptionally high this time. Only 44 percent of Austrians say they 
have made up their mind on which party to support. Young voters in 
particular have stated they are as yet undecided. 
Centrist daily Die Presse explains that 29 percent of voters have 
said they have "no clue" yet which party they are going to vote for 
October 1. Another 27 percent still have only a "vague idea" whom 
they will support on election day. The daily also points to what it 
calls a "remarkable" fact: Since the beginning of the Imas polling 
institute's surveys on voters' support in June the number of 
undecided voters has not grown smaller. The current situation, Imas 
believes, is partially due to the large number of parties running in 
the election and the domestic policy turmoil in Austria since the 
emergence of the scandal surrounding the union-owned bank Bawag. The 
majority of undecided voters are under 30, the Presse adds. 
 
 
Fifth TV Debate 
 
¶3. The fifth televised political debate between Minister for the 
Environment Josef Proell for the OeVP and FPOe leader 
Heinz-Christian Strache showed the two parties apparently have very 
little in common. Proell accused Strache of having chosen the 
"hooligan sector" and ruled out an OeVP coalition with the Freedom 
Party. 
On ORF radio early morning news Morgenjornal, reporter Peter Daser 
summarized the debate: "A coalition with the FPOe is out of the 
question, OeVP Minister Proell stressed at the beginning of the 
debate: 'With the FPOe under your leadership, Mr. Strache, there 
will certainly be no coalition with the OeVP. You've voluntarily 
stated that you've put yourself in the hooligan sector, and it's a 
good thing you've made that clear,' Proell stressed. Strache, in 
turn, complained his party was being 'excluded.' He had 'noted that 
the Chancellor is ostracizing us, and the same goes for Mr. 
Gusenbauer [of the SPOe], who publicly said he would never form a 
coalition with us,' said Strache. There was also disagreement 
between Proell and Strache on topics including the EU -- where the 
OeVP representative praised its benefits, while the FPOe boss 
pointed to what he called its 'dangers' - and on the Eurofighter. 
For Proell, the interceptor jets are a guarantee for security, but 
Strache claims they are a waste of money. And while Strache warned 
against 'mass immigration,' Proell criticized the FPOe for fueling 
fears - something the Minister considers dangerous." 
 
 
EU'S Change of Course 
 
¶4. With Spain's decision to send all illegal immigrants back to 
their countries of origin, thousands of Africans are facing 
deportation. These drastic measures are seen as a change of course 
regarding immigration policies on the part of Spain and the European 
Union, says mass-circulation daily Kurier. 
 
 
Annan on Iraq War 
 
¶5. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has told journalists most Middle 
East leaders regard the US-led invasion of Iraq as a "disaster" for 
the region. Speaking after his recent tour of the Middle East, Annan 
stressed that the timing of any US withdrawal was now a key issue, 
with some leaders wanting the US to stay and stabilize Iraq, while 
others are pushing for an immediate withdrawal. 
ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal quotes UN Secretary 
General Kofi Annan as saying: "In a way, the US has found itself in 
a position where it cannot stay, and where it cannot leave." 
 
Solana - Larijani Meeting off 
 
¶6. A meeting scheduled for today between the EU's foreign policy 
chief Javier Solana and Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani 
has been postponed. Instead, aides to the two envoys are to meet. No 
reason has been given for the sudden change. 
ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal also says that at a 
meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency's board of 
governors in Vienna, the United States has called for a rapid move 
towards imposing sanctions on Iran for failing to suspend uranium 
enrichment as required by the UN Security Council. US Ambassador to 
UNVIE Gregory Schulte stressed: "We would like to hear that Iran 
will suspend its enrichment activities and cooperate with the IAEA. 
We have yet to hear that, I say with regret." 
Meanwhile, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today said he is 
open to what he called "new conditions" to resolve the nuclear 
standoff. He stated he believes talks could end the dispute. 
McCaw