Austrian president to meet Freedom Party leader over gov't formation

VIENNA - Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen said Sunday that he would meet the Freedom Party' leader Herbert Kickl on Monday to discuss the formation of a new government while the conservative People's Party softened its stance, saying it is now open to talks with the far-right party.

The move came after the collapse of three-party coalition talks among the People's Party, the Social Democratic Party and the NEOS party and later the failure of two-party negotiations following the NEOS' withdrawal.

On Saturday, Karl Nehammer announced his resignation as chancellor of the Austrian caretaker government and chairman of the People's Party after the coalition talks fell apart. Van der Bellen has said that he would appoint an interim chancellor in the coming week.

Nehammer had repeatedly ruled out the possibility of a coalition with the Freedom Party under Kickl's leadership after the far-right party came first in Austria's parliamentary election in September.

Van der Bellen said on Sunday he was informed by Nehammer that "the voices within the People's Party that rule out cooperation with Kickl have become quieter," which opens up the path for a coalition between the People's Party and the Freedom Party.

However, the Austrian president did not confirm that he would give the Freedom Party a mandate to form a new government, according to Austrian news agency APA.

The People's Party on Sunday appointed its secretary-general Christian Stocker to succeed Nehammer as its interim leader.

Stocker, a sharp critic of Kickl for months, told a press conference later that day that his party would be willing to accept an offer of coalition negotiations from the Freedom Party.

Stocker defended the U-turn citing the changed situation after the failure of coalition talks with the Social Democratic Party, stressing that it is "about the country getting a stable government and not wasting time with election campaigns", APA reported.

The failed three-party coalition talks had dragged on since mid-November following Van der Bellen's decision in October to task the People's Party with forming a government.

In September's parliamentary election, the Freedom Party came first with around 29 percent of the vote, followed by the People's Party and the Social Democratic Party with 26.3 percent and 21.1 percent respectively. Although the Freedom Party won the parliamentary presidency, it had been unable to find coalition partners to form a government.