On the current political situation in Austria
Vienna, 10 January 2025
By Leander Kaiser
Herzlichen Dank an Cynthia Peck-Kubaczek für die Übersetzung ins Englische von Leander Kaisers „Brief an die FriedensfreundInnen„. Der Offene Brief, verfasst am 10. Jänner 2025, ist zugleich ein Kommentar zur gegenwärtigen politischen Situation in Österreich.!
With the FPÖ, a political party is coming to power in Austria that opposes “warmongering,” namely, support for Ukraine through arms deliveries or funding for its war effort. The party promotes strict adherence to Austrian neutrality and supports improved relations with Russia. Much of this stance aligns what many advocates of peace have been demanding since March 2022. Those people would now be feeling a certain sense of gratification, if only—as antifascists, which they consider themselves to be—they did not despise the above party and see it as a threat to democracy. These more or less left-leaning advocates of peace certainly did not vote for this party. But they must nevertheless ask themselves whether their own agitation against “warmongering” and “war hysteria,” their opposition to supporting Ukraine’s defensive war, may not have also benefited the “wrong side.” Objectively ending up on the wrong side (even without subjective intentions) doesn’t happen by chance, but is rather the result of one’s politics in a given historical context.
Among the advocates of peace addressed in this open letter, I am not including those who refuse to condemn Russian aggression or who justify it, or see Ukrainians merely as cannon fodder in a proxy war for the U.S. and the West. I am not addressing those who deny the Ukrainian people their right to national self-determination and an independent political will. Nor am I speaking to those who gloat over every Ukrainian setback, rave about Russian superiority, find Zelenskyy simply annoying, or desire a swift peace at Ukraine’s expense just to keep gas prices low. The advocates of peace I am addressing can be distinguished from these people using a simple criterion: The views of the above groups would be well-received in Russia, whereas the outrage over “warmongering and war hysteria” of those I am addressing is honorably also directed at Russian propaganda. It would likely land them in a Russian prison or labor camp.
Perhaps the FPÖ’s election victory has made a few people more aware of the historical situation we find ourselves in. A major imperialist power with a dictatorial fascist leadership has unlawfully started a war to annex large parts of a neighboring country and impose its will on the rest. At the same time, this power promotes right-wing radical groups that are friendly to Russia and promote the “dismantling” or dissolution of the European Union. These groups are gaining momentum across Europe, some already close to becoming or soon to become members of ruling governments. If this is not the hour for antifascism, for a resounding “NEVER AGAIN,” then I don’t know when it would be—except when it’s too late. To me, it seems impossible to confront our right-wing radical architects of an “illiberal democracy” under authoritarian leadership—the fascists or semi-fascists (or whatever we might call them)—if with regard to the central question of foreign policy, which has long become the central domestic issue in Europe, one largely shares their position and supports them, directly or indirectly, through one’s own peace activities. Historical logic, mistakenly called war logic, is harsher and more real than talk of “peace logic” (Munich 1938, Minsk 2015). Even those who wish—out of humanitarian compassion for the victims, the wounded and dead on both sides—for an end to the carnage, for an end to the war and peace at any cost, even they find themselves on the wrong side: the side of the aggressor and the enemies of democracy.
To protest and resist the plans and measures of the Kickl government, we must address both foreign and domestic policy. As a priority, we must oppose Austria withdrawing (as Hungary has done) from the European consensus for decisively supporting the existence of Ukraine and its war of defense. It will no longer suffice to point at anti-Semitic fraternities or the few “basement Nazis” who might come to power with the FPÖ. Slogans like “Nazis out!” may appeal to one’s base. But not only are such slogans inaccurate—the FPÖ doesn’t have a Nazi platform—they also trivialize the crimes of National Socialism. Antifascists must scrutinize and comprehend their real opponents, instead of avoiding critical thought by using outdated denunciations that have long since lost their impact.
Dear advocates of peace, this letter is certainly roughly worded. However, it is an invitation to reflect together on the tasks now faced by antifascists in the world of today.