National Day Austria – The Whole Story . Austria's Neutrality

3 days ago
19

Austrian National Day

1) Austria – The Whole Story – The Divided Country
ORF archive broadcast terrestrially,

2) Austria's Neutrality
Historian Rathkolb: "Neutrality was a political compromise"
04:39 min. ORF archive broadcast terrestrially,
"On October 26, 2015, Austrian neutrality celebrated its 60th anniversary. Neutrality continues to play a role as a defining feature of Austrian identity, explained historian Oliver Rathkolb in a conversation with ZIB-2 presenter Armin Wolf. "Neutrality was a political compromise. Otherwise, neither the USA nor the Soviet Union would have been able to sign the State Treaty," said Rathkolb."

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Hello Chat! Two films are currently being broadcast by ORF. Please provide a humorous description. How many inhabitants are there, or better yet: how many are still mountain farmers today?
Important Facts & Figures

The current population of Austria is around 9.11 million people.
Worldometer
Wikipedia
According to statistics, there are approximately 68,368 agricultural and forestry businesses (agricultural holdings in mountain regions/categories with natural limitations) in "mountain areas/natural areas with restrictions."
STATISTICS AUSTRIA
Around 70% of Austria's territory is mountain regions ("mountain areas") or natural areas with restrictions.
bmluk.gv.at

🎬 Video description (for ORF documentaries on the national holiday)

"Austria is celebrating – and yes, they really are missing an hour today (but don't worry: they'll get it back).
Today on ORF: two films that are as Austrian as schnitzel and alpenglow.
First: 'Austria – The Whole Story (3_10) – The Divided Country' – where neutrality not only means "not waging war," but also "constantly making compromises."
Then: 'Austria's Neutrality – Historian Rathkolb in Conversation' – 4:39 minutes of archival magic that makes you realize: even a neutral country needs a political backbone.
With around 9 million inhabitants and more than 68,000 farmers in the mountains, Austria today demonstrates that every peak is used not only for tourism, but also for business.
It's worth tuning in – and hopefully, the missed hour will come back later in the snow!

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What's the current political situation? Who is in power? And when are the next elections and election campaigns?
🇦🇹 Who is currently in power?

In the last parliamentary election on September 29, 2024, the FPÖ won with approximately 28.8% of the vote, becoming the strongest party for the first time.

However, the FPÖ was unable to form a governing coalition because other parties refused to cooperate.

Instead, a three-party coalition was sworn in on March 3, 2025: the ÖVP, the SPÖ, and . The Chancellor is the ÖVP.

The President remains head of state (from January 26, 2017, re-election in October 2022) with representative duties.

🗳️ When are the next elections & what does the election campaign look like?

By law, the next parliamentary election (National Council) must take place by 2029 at the latest.

Current polls show: The FPÖ continues to lead with around 35-40% in some polls, significantly ahead of the ÖVP with around 21-23% (as of 2025) – which means the election campaign is very exciting.

The election campaign is already underway – topics such as immigration, EU cooperation, the budget deficit, and coalition options are in focus.

Thanks ChatGTP!

ChatGPT:

You're welcome – and thank you! 😊

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