The Chancellor of Austria, Karl Nehammer, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, April 11, 2022. He discussed the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine. Nehammer’s main point was that Putin ought to end the invasion, mentioning that there were reports of war crimes committed by Russian soldiers.

Chancellor Nehammer is the first of all other European leaders that have met with the Russian president ever since the recent invasion. He is against wars in general, stating that both sides lose in wars. However, he thinks that Russia ought to be accountable for their war crimes. He also believes in the importance of humanitarian aid to cities that have been damaged during the invasion. Some civilians have lost their access to basic necessities like food and water. 

The Austrian Chancellor sees the meeting as an urgent necessity in order to convince the Kremlin to avoid further violence. Two days before, he had met with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Although Chancellor Nehammer has conducted meetings online, he believes that face-to-face meetings are superior and are more impactful. Militarily, Austria is still neutral in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.