AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: October 06, 2006

UNCLAS VIENNA 002997 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/AGS, INR/EU, AND EUR/PPD FOR YVETTE SAINT-ANDRE OSD FOR COMMANDER CHAFFEE WHITEHOUSE FOR NSC/WEUROPE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KPAO AU OPRC SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: October 06, 2006 Gehrer Turns Her Back on Politics ¶1. Education Minister Elisabeth Gehrer is the first politician to respond to the OeVP's defeat in the general elections: She announced yesterday she will resign as minister when the new government is sworn in and retire from politics entirely. All Austrian media report that Elisabeth Gehrer not only resigns as minister - she is also not going to claim her parliamentary seat following the formation of Austria's next government. Talking to centrist daily Die Presse, Gehrer emphasized her "shock" over the (election campaign) attacks on the chancellor and her person by the SPOe and the Greens, stressing she considered the TV and newspaper ads "poor style, hurtful and insulting." She also told ORF TV she does not want to be labeled someone who "holds on to a post past their time," and that she wants to make room in the government for younger people. The SPOe, the Greens and the FPOe say they do not regret Gehrer's decision, the Presse concludes. Analysts on General Elections ¶2. Austrian political analysts agree that polling institutes failed to predict the election result, and particularly the OeVP's losses. The Conservatives have lost the support of many religious voters, they say. In semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung, head of polling institute Fessel GfK Austria Peter Ulram admitted that "in all honesty, the pollsters did not foresee this result. No institute had the SPOe down for first place." Ulram adds that although polling institutes expected losses for the OeVP, they always saw the Conservatives ahead of the SPOe by at least 2 to 3 percent. According to the political analyst, among the reasons for the unexpected election outcome are the vast number of undecided voters, as well as the considerable losses the OeVP incurred among religious Austrian voters. Poll on Chancellor Preferences ¶3. A survey by polling institute Gallup on who Austrians prefer as the next chancellor shows that 60 percent want SPOe leader Alfred Gusenbauer as the next head of government. In addition, 68 percent of Austrians say they would prefer a grand coalition. According to the Gallup poll, the balance has shifted in favor of SPOe leader Alfred Gusenbauer, when it comes to the question of who Austrians want as their next chancellor: While 60 percent say they prefer the Social Democrats' chairperson holding that office, only 27 percent want a third term for incumbent Wolfgang Schuessel. In addition, newly established daily Oesterreich writes, the Gallup survey showed 68 percent in favor of a grand coalition, while ten percent want a SPOe coalition with the Greens and the BZOe, and only nine percent would welcome an OeVP-FPOe-BZOe government. Coalition Preferences According to the OeVP ¶4. Support is increasing in the OeVP for a center-right coalition with the FPOe and its spin-off BZOe as an alternative to the "unloved" grand-coalition option. According to a front-page report in centrist daily Die Presse, Styrian OeVP leader Hermann Schuetzenhoefer in particular said he sees "no reason to ostracize the 500,000 FPOe voters." Schuetzenhoefer told the Presse that his party should consider all possible coalition options, including cooperation with the FPOe and the BZOe. Other leading OeVP representatives, too, have suggested the formation of a center-right government, "should the SPOe refuse to budge" on issues important to the OeVP. Europe and Anti-Americanism ¶5. With Anti-American tendencies on the advance worldwide, an Austrian panel of political experts suggests Anti-Americanism is the "glue keeping Europeans together." At a U.S. Embassy-organized conference in Vienna, experts were discussing the reasons and the possible development of Anti-American trends. Pollster and political analyst Peter Ulram, who believes Anti-Americanism is something that unites European, argues that the joint stance against the US "helps cover up the lack of common topics among Europeans." While people from different European states may have little to say to each other regarding country-specific topics, they can easily share their views on the United States, particularly given the fact that the majority of Europeans holds negative views of the US, semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung reports on the conference. Peter Ulram points out that Europe's critical stance towards the US is partially rooted in history: There is a long tradition of Anti-Americanism. Furthermore, since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the US has not been needed any longer as a protective force against Communism. Rather, the opposite seems to be the case: the key motivating force for Anti-American tendencies is rooted in the desire to establish a more balanced world and to relieve the US of its position as the only remaining superpower. Israel's Attack on UN Soldiers ¶6. The UN has accepted Israel's explanation that its attack on a UN post in southern Lebanon in which four soldiers were killed was an "accident." In fact, however, the Israeli army had been watching the UN post because Hezbollah was able to access information on Israel via the UNIFIL website. Mass-circulation daily Kurier explains that in the most recent conflict between Israel and Lebanon, the Israeli army did not have a clear picture of its opponent, due to the rather short run-up time, and was therefore walking into one trap after another. Hezbollah leader Hassam Nasrallah, however, merely needed to access UNIFIL's web page in order to get the latest news on Israeli troop movements. The information there was usually about 30 minutes, and never more than 24 hours, old, Kurier writes. In contrast, the Israeli army did not have that option with Hezbollah, although UNIFIL also had a very good overview of their activities. US and China Warn North Korea ¶7. Following a stern warning from the US, China has now also adopted a tougher stance on North Korea. China's Ambassador to the UN Wang Guangya warned that Pyongyang would have to expect "serious consequences," should it push ahead with its nuclear weapons test. Like China, the United States has issued a strong warning and threatened consequences should Pyongyang refuse to call off its nuclear test, underscoring that America would "not accept a North Korea armed with nuclear weapons." Pyongyang could choose between "a future or these weapons," liberal daily Der Standard quotes Assistant Secertary of State Christopher hill. The daily adds that Japan has said it would also ask the UN Security Coucil to issue a warning. Japan, Britain and France have meanwhile stressed that a strong statement is necessary, US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton is quoted by the daily. Rice Urges End to Iraqi Violence ¶8. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, speaking to Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni leaders on a surprise visit to Baghdad, has called on politicians to act urgently to end the rising tide of sectarian violence in the country. Speaking to Iraqi representatives across the spectrum, Rice called on them to work together towards reconciliation and to disarm the militia groups behind the violence, ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal says. Similarly, liberal daily Der Standard reports that the US Secretary of State on her surprise visit in Baghdad criticized the Iraqi parties' "political inactivity." The security situation in the country was "no longer acceptable," Rice emphasized. McCaw