<p>Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz announced on Thursday that he is leaving politics.</p>

<p>It comes weeks after he stepped down as national leader after being implicated in a corruption scandal.</p>

<p>During a press conference he said, ''I am extremely grateful for this time, for all the experiences … and I hope very much that I made my contribution to move our beautiful Austria a little bit in the right direction,''</p>

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<p>"For me, a new chapter begins in my life that I can open today," Kurz said adding he would hand over the party leadership.</p>

<p>Decribing himself as "neither a saint nor a criminal," he said he had felt "hunted" because of hefty criticism during his time as chancellor.</p>

<p>The 35-year-old, who was one of Europe's youngest leaders, was dubbed “Wunderwuzzi,” whizzkid in Austria.</p>

<p>He has been the dominant and most polarising figure of Austrian politics since 2017.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/austrian-chancellor-kurz-steps-down-over-corruption-allegations-419525"><strong>Also read |&nbsp;Austrian Chancellor Kurz steps down over corruption allegations</strong></a></p>

<p>The decision has stunned national politics and left his conservative People's Party (OeVP) in disarray.</p>

<p>President Alexander Van der Bellen said he thanked Kurz in a telephone call for the "good and trustful cooperation".</p>

<p>Kurz's former deputy, Vice-Chancellor Werner Kogler, said he had "great respect" for Kurz's decision.</p>

<p>"Despite all the differences, we have achieved a lot together," he tweeted.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="de">Ich habe großen Respekt vor der Entscheidung von Sebastian Kurz. Wir haben gemeinsam in der Bundesregierung trotz aller Unterschiede viel erreicht. Die Zeit war geprägt von der Pandemie und deren Auswirkungen. (1/2)</p>
— Werner Kogler (@WKogler) <a href="https://twitter.com/WKogler/status/1466362797294600192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>Beate Meinl-Reisinger, leader of the NEOS, a liberal opposition party, tweeted “I sincerely wish you all the best. With everything that we have seen differently in politics, what ultimately remains is the person and he also deserves thanks for his work!”</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="de">Ich wünsche Dir <a href="https://twitter.com/sebastiankurz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sebastiankurz</a> aufrichtig alles Gute. Bei allem was wir in der Politik unterschiedlich gesehen haben, was letztlich auch bleibt ist der Mensch und dem gebührt auch Dank für seine Arbeit!</p>
— Beate Meinl-Reisinger (@BMeinl) <a href="https://twitter.com/BMeinl/status/1466330624181121027?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<p>A new OVP leader could also lead to a cabinet reshuffle, as party statutes say the leader can pick the party's ministers.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The OVP is in coalition with the left-wing Greens and controls most ministries including foreign affairs and finance.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz announced on Thursday that he is leaving politics. It comes weeks after he stepped down as national leader after being implicated in a corruption scandal.

Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz announced on Thursday that he is leaving politics. It comes weeks after he stepped down as national leader after being implicated in a corruption scandal. During a press conference he said, ''I am extremely grateful for this time, for all the experiences … and I hope very much that I made my contribution to move our beautiful Austria a little bit in the right direction,'' "For me, a new chapter begins in my life that I can open today," Kurz said adding he would hand over the party leadership. Decribing himself as "neither a saint nor a criminal," he said he had felt "hunted" because of hefty criticism during his time as chancellor. The 35-year-old, who was one of Europe's youngest leaders, was dubbed “Wunderwuzzi,” whizzkid in Austria. He has been the dominant and most polarising figure of Austrian politics since 2017. Also read | Austrian Chancellor Kurz steps down over corruption allegations The decision has stunned national politics and left his conservative People's Party (OeVP) in disarray. President Alexander Van der Bellen said he thanked Kurz in a telephone call for the "good and trustful cooperation". Kurz's former deputy, Vice-Chancellor Werner Kogler, said he had "great respect" for Kurz's decision. "Despite all the differences, we have achieved a lot together," he tweeted. Ich habe großen Respekt vor der Entscheidung von Sebastian Kurz. Wir haben gemeinsam in der Bundesregierung trotz aller Unterschiede viel erreicht. Die Zeit war geprägt von der Pandemie und deren Auswirkungen. (1/2) — Werner Kogler (@WKogler) December 2, 2021 × Beate Meinl-Reisinger, leader of the NEOS, a liberal opposition party, tweeted “I sincerely wish you all the best. With everything that we have seen differently in politics, what ultimately remains is the person and he also deserves thanks for his work!” Ich wünsche Dir @sebastiankurz aufrichtig alles Gute. Bei allem was wir in der Politik unterschiedlich gesehen haben, was letztlich auch bleibt ist der Mensch und dem gebührt auch Dank für seine Arbeit! — Beate Meinl-Reisinger (@BMeinl) December 2, 2021 × A new OVP leader could also lead to a cabinet reshuffle, as party statutes say the leader can pick the party's ministers. The OVP is in coalition with the left-wing Greens and controls most ministries including foreign affairs and finance. (With inputs from agencies)

Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz quits politics over corruption scandal

<p>Austrian Chancellor <strong>Sebastian Kurz</strong> resigned after pressure over accusation in a corruption scandal.</p>

<p>Kurz, 35, who denied any wrongdoing was under fire from his own coalition partner the <strong>Greens</strong>.&nbsp;Kurz said he wanted to "end the stalemate to prevent chaos" as he stepped down from office.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The outgoing Chancellor put forward the name of foreign minister Alexander Schallenberg as the new head which the Greens said was the "right step for future government work".</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/austrias-former-far-right-leader-on-trial-for-corruption-396162">Also Read:&nbsp;Austria's former far-right leader on trial for corruption</a></p>

<p>Kurz and nine others have been placed under <strong>corruption</strong> investigation involving suspicious corrupt deal to ensure positive media coverage between 2016 and 2018.</p>

<p>In 2017, Sebastian Kurz had become the youngest democratically elected leader in the world at 31 years of age, however, pressure grew on the Chancellor after raids were carried out by authorities linked to his <strong>People's Party</strong> (OeVP).</p>

<p>There were also demonstrations outside OeVP headquarter this week calling for Kurz's resignation as the coalition government began to crumble.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/austrian-muslims-to-sue-kurz-government-for-controversial-islam-map-388354">Also Read:&nbsp;Austrian Muslims to sue Kurz government for controversial 'Islam map'</a></p>

<p>Kurz has however maintained that the allegations are false while promising to clear his name. The Austrian Chancellor has had a tumultuous time as his far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) had collapsed two years ago and he was emoved in a no-confidence vote in parliament.</p>

<p>However, the young Chancellor made a comeback in the polls after his party came out on top in the elections. Kurz took the help of Greens last year in order to form a majority however there was friction with his junior party over immigration which was FPOe's core agenda.</p>

<p>Vice chancellor and Greens leader Werner Kogler had declared Kurz was "no longer fit for office" as the political crisis in Austria deepened leading to the regulation of the Chancellor.</p>

<p>(With inputs from Agencies)</p>


Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz resigned after pressure over accusation in a corruption scandal. Kurz, 35, who denied any wrongdoing was under fire from his own coalition partner the Greens.

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz resigned after pressure over accusation in a corruption scandal. Kurz, 35, who denied any wrongdoing was under fire from his own coalition partner the Greens. Kurz said he wanted to "end the stalemate to prevent chaos" as he stepped down from office. The outgoing Chancellor put forward the name of foreign minister Alexander Schallenberg as the new head which the Greens said was the "right step for future government work". Also Read: Austria's former far-right leader on trial for corruption Kurz and nine others have been placed under corruption investigation involving suspicious corrupt deal to ensure positive media coverage between 2016 and 2018. In 2017, Sebastian Kurz had become the youngest democratically elected leader in the world at 31 years of age, however, pressure grew on the Chancellor after raids were carried out by authorities linked to his People's Party (OeVP). There were also demonstrations outside OeVP headquarter this week calling for Kurz's resignation as the coalition government began to crumble. Also Read: Austrian Muslims to sue Kurz government for controversial 'Islam map' Kurz has however maintained that the allegations are false while promising to clear his name. The Austrian Chancellor has had a tumultuous time as his far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) had collapsed two years ago and he was emoved in a no-confidence vote in parliament. However, the young Chancellor made a comeback in the polls after his party came out on top in the elections. Kurz took the help of Greens last year in order to form a majority however there was friction with his junior party over immigration which was FPOe's core agenda. Vice chancellor and Greens leader Werner Kogler had declared Kurz was "no longer fit for office" as the political crisis in Austria deepened leading to the regulation of the Chancellor. (With inputs from Agencies)

Austrian Chancellor Kurz steps down over corruption allegations

Police said that several shots were fired shortly after 8 p.m. (1900 GMT) on a lively street in the city center and that there were six shooting locations.

Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurz says Vienna shooting was a 'repulsive terror attack'

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Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz quits politics over corruption scandal

Austrian Chancellor Kurz steps down over corruption allegations

Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurz says Vienna shooting was a 'repulsive terror attack'