At the moment, there is no question of moving the Austrian embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, Austrian Chancellor and leader of the conservative People's Party Sebastian Kurtz was quoted as saying in an interview with Israeli television.
"It would be very easy to move embassies if there was a solution at the negotiating table. "While this is not the case, I understand that Jerusalem has a special significance for Judaism, but also for other world religions," he said.
The chancellor defended in his interview the presence of the Austrian ambassador to Israel at the reception of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the occasion of the inauguration of the US embassy in Jerusalem.
"We would make the same decision again. "Sometimes I wish we in Europe were more aware of your region, of the security situation that Israel has to fight for."
He said he respected the Israeli government's decision not to have contact with the co-ruling Austrian (far-right nationalist) Free Party, but at the same time said it was the most pro-Israeli government Austria had ever had.
In his view, "the government's program on this issue is as clear as ever, and not only in relation to our historical responsibility, for World War II, for the Holocaust, the murder of so many Jews. "Our government policy is, above all, very clear, in relation to Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state, and I very much hope that there is an awareness of that."
Asked about the problematic statements (including anti-Semitic, xenophobic, etc.) by members of the ruling Free Party, the chancellor acknowledged that there were many "problematic" views, but said that the Austrian Heinz-Christian Strache, vice-chancellor and leader of the Free Heinz, is trying to change his party.