AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: November 21, 2006

UNCLAS VIENNA 003382 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: November 21, 2006 Coalition Talks to Resume ¶1. Coalition talks between the People's Party and the Social Democrats resume on Wednesday, but speculation continues about what the next government will look like. Austrian President Heinz Fischer is calling for "serious and focused" coalition talks, adding he would welcome a deal by Christmas. According to semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung, the SPOe was irritated by Chancellor and OeVP leader Wolfgang Schuessel's meeting Friday with Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of the Freedom Party. However, Schuessel also met with the leader of the Greens, Alexander Van der Bellen. The OeVP has sought to ease SPOe concerns by saying the meetings were "normal" talks among party leaders and not part of an OeVP plan to seek an alternative to a grand coalition with the SPOe. On Monday, Chancellor Schuessel met with President Heinz Fischer to discuss the next round of talks. The SPOe's Alfred Gusenbauer held similar talks with Fischer on Friday. After his meeting with Schuessel, Fischer said he hoped the OeVP and SPOe would give a grand coalition "a fair chance" to succeed. The President added that he expects talks to be "difficult," but hopes they will also be "serious and focused," producing a government by Christmas, the daily says. Fischer emphasized the Austrian people's patience was running out over the failure to form a new government seven weeks after the general election. EU Ultimatum for Turkey ¶2. In the dispute between Ankara and Brussels over Turkey's recognition of Cyprus, the Finnish EU Presidency has demanded Turkey meet its obligations within two weeks. Should Ankara refuse to lift the blockade of its ports and airports for Cypriot ships and planes, there will be drastic consequences concerning Turkey's EU membership process. Brussels has not ruled out freezing entry talks for the time being. According to mass-circulation daily Kurier, Turkey has so far refused to budge on the Cyprus issue despite the EU's ultimatum. Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik told the daily that "a mutually agreed-on time out could be a smart solution." Such a move could "reduce tensions instead of increasing them," she added. Plassnik praised the Finnish proposal, stressing that "no one wants a Turkey crisis at the EU summit...We need to act in time to prevent such a crisis." It was necessary to determine whether there is a chance for a solution - after all, "all elements have been on the table for quite some time." The EU Commission will meet December 6 to issue its recommendation on how the Turkish EU entry process should proceed if Ankara refuses to give in on Cyprus. The Kurier argues that if no solution is found, the consequence could be suspension of Turkish membership talks in important areas, including the free movement of goods, the customs union and traffic agreements. Austrian Still Missing in Iraq ¶3. In the case of Bert Nussbaumer, the Austrian national abducted in Iraq last week, some Austrian media speculate that negotiations with the kidnappers are already underway. Security experts believe that demands for a ransom payment have likely been issued -- with one newspaper suggesting up to 20 million Euros could have been demanded for the Austrian's release. With still no trace of the kidnapped Austrian and his four American colleagues, the Austrian Foreign Ministry has increased pressure on its contacts in Iraq, ministry spokesperson Astrid Harz confirmed, according to mass-circulation tabloid Oesterreich. While Harz declined to comment on alleged ransom demands, security experts, including Austrian military strategist Gerald Karner, agree that most kidnappings are about money. "In such abduction cases the issue of acquiring money is usually at the top of the agenda. Political aspects are mostly just camouflage," Karner told Oesterreich. However, official sources will not confirm such speculation, as ransom payments always create the impression that the government in question is open to blackmail, the daily explains. Iran to Host Iraq Meeting ¶4. Iraq's President Jalal Talabani has accepted an invitation to go to Iran for talks on how to deal with violence in his country. Talabani is expected to meet Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran on Saturday. There are also unconfirmed reports that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may also join the meeting. ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal reports on the upcoming Iraq security meeting hosted by Iran with the possible participation of Syria on Saturday. ORF radio quotes an Iranian journalist as saying that Iran is "very concerned about the possibility of a dismemberment of Iraq, and that, if this civil strife deepens, Iran might get drawn in on the side of the Shiites in a proxy war." Meanwhile, ORF online news writes that the foreign ministers of Iraq and Syria told journalists in Baghdad today that their two countries have resumed diplomatic relations after an interruption of 25 years. McCaw