Anti-Turkey FM Sebastian Kurz appointed as head of OVP
Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz calls for snap election in fall
- World
- Anadolu Agency
- Published Date: 12:00 | 15 May 2017
- Modified Date: 12:59 | 15 May 2017
Austria's People's Party (OVP) on Sunday appointed Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, who is known for his anti-Turkey stance, as its new head.
At the news conference, Kurz called for a snap election in fall while the OVP is the junior party in the coalition government.
He was elected after Reinhold Mitterlehner resigned Tuesday from his posts as deputy prime minister and head of the party.
Kurz, 30, was the chairman of the youth branch of the OVP in 2009 before he became a member of Vienna's city council in 2010.
He was appointed State Secretary for Integration in 2011, then foreign minister after he was elected as a member of parliament in the 2013 general election.
He has suggested that the European Union puts Turkey's accession talks on hold, and strictly opposes migration.
Like other centrist factions in Europe, the OeVP has suffered the wrath of disillusioned voters over rising unemployment and a huge influx of migrants.
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