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SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: October 05, 2006 
 
A Grand Coalition - Or Not? 
 
¶1. The chairperson of the Social Democrats Alfred Gusenbauer has 
said he only wants to hold coalition talks with the conservative 
OeVP, because "a two-party coalition is more stable than a 
three-party one." The OeVP, however, is divided on whether they want 
to govern with the SPOe. 
Presenting his team for the coalition negotiations, SPOe leader 
Alfred Gusenbauer Wednesday stressed he would prefer a grand 
coalition, and urged the Conservatives to "show responsibility and 
calm" in the negotiation process. All politicians now need to 
"accept, understand and implement" the election results, 
mass-circulation daily Kurier quotes him as saying. The Austrian 
people want change, Gusenbauer said, and the OeVP will have to 
comply, because otherwise the "message was that the voters were 
wrong." The OeVP, however, disagrees on the issue of a grand 
coalition, writes liberal daily Der Standard. While Interior 
Minister Liese Prokop says she can no longer imagine cooperation 
with the SPOe, the OeVP's top economic representatives are in favor 
of a SPOe-OEVP coalition, because "at this point there is no 
alternative." Apparently, the Standard concludes, the Conservatives 
are suffering from post-election trauma. 
 
 
Fischer on Government 
 
¶2. Speaking on ORF TV yesterday, Austrian President Heinz Fischer 
emphasized he would welcome the formation of a "stable coalition 
government" by Christmas. 
After meeting with the leaders of all five major Austrian parties on 
Tuesday and Wednesday, Heinz Fischer explained on ORF TV's prime 
time news Zeit im Bild I  that for him the election outcome is 
"clear enough" to ask one of the party leaders - most likely SPOe 
chairperson Alfred Gusenbauer - to form a coalition government. 
According to semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung, Fischer added he 
sees no need for preliminary talks between the parties as after the 
past two general elections. Although he is hoping a government will 
be formed soon, the decision is not up to him, the President said. 
Aside from expressing his wish for a stable government, Fischer 
declined to comment on whether he has a preferred coalition 
combination. 
 
 
The Eurofighter Problem 
 
¶3. Austrian media continue to see the controversial Eurofighter 
purchase as a potential stumbling block for a new government. A 
daily suggests the formation of a (grand) coalition could even fail 
because of the issue. 
Centrist daily Die Presse explains in a front-page report that the 
SPOe, which wants to back out of the Eurofighter deal could succeed 
in getting a parliamentary majorit October 30 for its plan, as both 
the Greens andthe FPOe have suggested they might support the Social 
Democrats' move. OeVP floor leader Wilhelm Molterer, on the other 
hand, re-iterated that for the Conservatives the interceptor 
purchase is not up for discussion, and that it remains a key issue 
for the OeVP in any government coalition negation. Likewise, Defense 
Minister Guenther Platter underscored that acquisition of airspace 
surveillance jets is necessary. Given these fundamental differences, 
the Presse suggests that a grand coalition could collapse even 
before its inception. 
 
Schuessel's Future 
 
¶4. An Austrian daily speculates that outgoing Chancellor Wolfgang 
Schuessel is going to resign as OeVP leader following the coalition 
negotiations for a new Austrian government and that he could be 
arranging for a career in the EU Commission. 
According to a report in newly established daily Oesterreich, 
Wolfgang Schuessel is already working on his transfer to Brussels 
behind the scenes. The paper suggests that Schuessel could replace 
Foreign Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner in the 
Commission. This would require Ferrero-Waldner to step down, 
whereupon the Austrian head of government - most likely Alfred 
Gusenbauer - could nominate a new Commissioner. The plan would 
actually work in the SPOe leader's favor: He would be rid of his key 
opponent, Oesterreich argues. The only problem is that the Foreign 
Relations Commissioner's portfolio is going to be curtailed 
substantially in the next few years, so Schuessel might not consider 
the post prestigious enough any longer. 
 
 
EU Visas for US Diplomats 
 
¶5. The EU Commission is considering making US diplomats apply for 
visas, in retaliation for Washington's refusal to waive visas for 
citizens of 10 EU states. Commissioner Franco Frattini says the US 
position on the issue is "no longer understandable and acceptable." 
 
In the dispute over lifting US visa requirements for Greece and all 
new EU member states except Slovenia, the EU Commission has now 
suggested "sanctions" against the US, centrist daily Die Presse 
reports. Brussels has suggested introducing visa requirements for US 
diplomats. The EU interior and justice ministers are meeting in 
Luxembourg today to discuss the issue. Semi-official daily Wiener 
Zeitung quotes Commissioner Franco Frattini, who complained in a 
letter to US homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff that US 
visa requirements for some EU states were "an extremely frustrating 
experience" for these countries' citizens. According to the EU 
Commission, no progress has been made in talks with the US on visa 
waivers for the EU states in question. 
 
 
Turkey and the EU 
 
¶6. A year after the beginning of membership talks with the European 
Union, Ankara is still lagging behind on reforms. The pressure on 
Turkey to meet EU requirements is growing. 
In particular, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is going to push for 
Turkey to open up to Cypriot ships and airplanes when she meets with 
Turkish government officials today. A EU "compromise on Cyprus is 
not on the agenda," the German Chancellery said in a statement. Thus 
Germany, which will take over the EU Presidency next year, made it 
clear it expects Ankara to signal its willingness for the 
continuation of EU membership talks, semi-official daily Wiener 
Zeitung writes. Merkel's trip comes at the time of the most severe 
crisis between the EU and Turkey over Ankara's membership in the 
Union. Now, Turkey has come under considerable pressure regarding 
Cyprus, because if it fails to comply by the end of this year, the 
EU could call off entry talks entirely, the daily says. 
 
 
Palestinian Government Efforts Fail 
 
¶7. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday that talks 
with Hamas on forming a unity government had collapsed and that the 
preliminary coalition agreement of September 11 was not longer 
valid. Talks will have to begin from scratch again. 
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is holding talks 
with Israeli political leaders today. ORF radio early morning news 
Morgenjournal says she is expected to push for an easing of border 
restrictions around the Gaza Strip. The Arab League Ambassador to 
the UN has stressed the US must involve all countries in the region 
if Washington wants to revive the Mideast peace process. ORF radio 
quotes him as saying that, hopefully, the "trip of Secretary Rice is 
the beginning of a new phase to engage the Arabs and the Israelis in 
direct negotiations leading to a peaceful settlement." 
Middle East expert and foreign editor for liberal daily Der Standard 
Gudrun Harrer argues that at this point it will be particularly 
difficult for the Secretary of State to sell the US Mideast policy 
plans to Washington's allies in the region." Most Arab leaders have 
little appreciation for the US' rejection of Hamas, and with the 
exception of the Saudis, the entire region is still dealing with the 
fallout of the Lebanon war. Frustration in the region over America's 
Middle East policy has never been greater, and the countries' 
leaders can hardly afford to distance themselves even more from 
their people on this, Harrer says. 
 
 
US Closing Down Its Borders 
 
¶8. US President George Bush has signed into law a fence project for 
the US border, despite protests from Mexico. The more than 1,000 
kilometers of barbed wire fence mounted with video cameras is to 
stem the flow of illegal immigrants from Mexico. 
Around 1.2 illegal immigrants were arrested last year, trying to 
cross the US border with Mexico. Outgoing Mexican President Vicente 
Fox has called the fence "shameful" and compared it to the Berlin 
Wall, says ORF radio Morgenjournal. Newly established daily 
Oesterreich writes that with this measure, the Bush administration 
is continuing its hard-line course on immigration. The daily notes 
that the Mexican embassy in Washington launched a formal protest 
against the planned 950-million-Euro project. The US is meanwhile 
trying to ease tensions, with State Department spokesperson Tom 
Casey stressing that Washington "values its good relations with 
Mexico." He emphasized the immigration dialogue the US was 
entertaining with its southern neighbor and which it would continue 
to entertain. 
 
 
US Warning for North Korea 
 
¶9. A top US official has revealed that Washington has directly 
warned North Korea not to test any nuclear weapons. Assistant 
Secretary of State Christopher Hill said the US has sent a message 
 
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to Pyongyang through diplomatic channels at the UN in New York. 
According to ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal, however, 
Hill did not specify how the US would respond if the nuclear test 
announced by North Korea takes place. Semi-official daily Wiener 
Zeitung writes that China has meanwhile urged Pyongyang to show 
restraint on the issue and to avoid everything that could further 
increase international tensions over North Korea's nuclear 
ambitions. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has called on Pyongyang 
to return to the negotiating table and resume the six-party talks. 
 
 
Scandal Hits US Republicans 
 
¶10. The leader of the Republicans in the US House of Representatives 
Dennis Hastert is facing new charges of covering up a scandal 
involving former Congressman Mark Foley, who resigned last week 
after it emerged that he sent sexually suggestive e-mails to young 
men on his staff. The allegations of a cover-up could prove 
problematic for the Republicans ahead of the mid-term elections in 
November. 
A former aide said he warned Hastert about his colleague's conduct 
more than two years ago, says ORF radio early morning news 
Morgenjournal. A political commentator for a Washington radio 
station is quoted as explaining why the allegations of a cover-up 
could hurt the Republicans in the mid-term elections: "The cover-up 
is going to be worse than a crime. I think what people are saying 
is: Do Republicans care more about just preserving their majority, 
or do they care about the integrity of the institution, the House of 
Representatives?" Like all Austrian media reporting on the issue, 
mass-circulation provincial daily Kleine Zeitung argues the scandal 
is putting pressure on President Bush: In the run-up to the November 
elections, his battered party has lost one of its key campaign 
arguments, its "moral integrity," the daily says, adding that the 
scandal could not have come at a worse time for the Republicans. 
McCaw