Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz arrived in Addis Ababa on Thursday (December 6) for an official visit. Upon arrival at Bole International Airport, Chancellor Kurz was welcomed by Foreign Minister Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu and other senior government officials. Chancellor Kurz’s visit to Ethiopia followed an invitation from Prime Minister Dr. Abiy when the two leaders met earlier in the year on the side-lines of the G20 Investment Summit held in Berlin, Germany. On that occasion, the two leaders agreed to expand the relations between Ethiopia and Austria.Following his arrival, Chancellor Kurz held discussions with Prime Minister Dr. Abiy onbilateral and multi-lateral issues of interest to both countries at the Prime Minister’s Office.
In his talks with the Austrian delegation, Prime Minister Dr. Abiy highlighted the strong historical relationship Ethiopia enjoyed with Austria and noted its importance for the current reforms that Ethiopia was undergoing. The Prime Minister acknowledged Chancellor Kurz’s visit as an opportunity to focus on investments, trade and technology exchange. The Prime Minister shared with Chancellor Kurz and his delegation that one of the key elements of the reforms to bring democracy in Ethiopia is changing the narrative and dynamics with competitive political parties, which for the longest time have been referred to as “opposition parties”.
Noting that at this moment all the political parties that have been in exile have returned to Ethiopia, the Prime Minister emphasized that part of the reforms the Government is spearheading, will guarantee democratic elections, bring stability to the country and make Ethiopia a role model in Africa. Prime Minister Dr. Abiy also shared that strengthening the bilateral relations with Austria was critical and this would be facilitated through the potential opening of an Ethiopian Embassy in Vienna.
Chancellor Kurz commended the changes taking place in Ethiopia and expressed his admiration for the processes of democratization as well as economic development that are unfolding through the reforms. Highlighting that Ethiopia would be a role model for other African countries, he also expressed his interest to strengthen the cooperation with Ethiopia and to also augment European Union -Africa relations from development cooperation to economic cooperation rooted in innovation.
Chancellor Kurz also met and held talks with President Sahle-Work Zewde on Thursday. They reviewed the status of the longstanding and historic relationship of Ethiopia and Austria. Chancellor Kurz said, “We have sound development cooperation. Besides this we want to further strengthen the economic partnership as the latter is the most sustainable form of cooperation”. President Sahle-Work also underlined the vital role of the economic cooperation between the two countries. She said, “Ethiopia has a lot to offer. And this is the right time to enhance the relationship in different ways. We are very delighted to receive the Chancellor. The visit shows the excellent relations we have with Austria.”
