For us, Austria is far more than a neighbour with which we have bonds thanks to language, history, family ties and friendships. We also have in common a responsibility for a strong and united Europe. A responsibility that is expressed not in large gestures, but in mutual trust. We especially need this trust now, when Putin’s brutal attacks on Ukraine are challenging our peaceful future as Europeans and the security of Europe as a whole. That is why we are working together to step up the pressure on Putin and to adopt additional sanctions at EU level.

Austria and Germany also have in common a clear task in the form of a responsibility deriving from our history: the joint fight against antisemitism. We encounter antisemitism every day, whether violently on the streets or loud on the internet. Our task as societies is to stand up every day anew against the hatred, the violence and the prejudice, so that there is no longer any room for antisemitism.

My Austrian counterpart and I will also be meeting the Israeli Foreign Minister in Vienna today. We firmly believe that, for lasting peace, the Palestinians need a future, in the Gaza Strip, in the West Bank and in East Jerusalem – but without Hamas. Never again must a massacre like that of 7 October 2023 be allowed to happen. Hamas must at last lay down its weapons and release all the hostages, so that there can be an end to the dying. German nationals are still being held hostage in the Gaza Strip. We will therefore continue to do everything possible to help mediate a ceasefire. At the same time, Israel must now do everything it can to save hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip from starvation and get supplies to them. That is Israel’s duty. The international aid organisations must be given comprehensive access immediately, so that they can get humanitarian assistance to the people.