Paris and Vienna are Gearing up for the UN Security Council
In November 2026, amid rising geopolitical tensions, France and Austria are enhancing their diplomatic cooperation. The French Embassy in Vienna is prioritizing global governance and Europe's role in the UN, coinciding with Austria's upcoming term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council starting next year, alongside permanent member France.
The French Embassy, along with the Franco-Austrian Centre for Rapprochement in Europe and the French Institute of International Relations, organized a conference titled “Europe in Global Disorder: Multilateralism, Conflict and Global Governance.” / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons, Thomas Wolf, www.foto-tw.de, CC BY-SA 3.0 DE
Already in the first week of November, the French Embassy in Vienna welcomed Ambassador Jean-Louis Falconi, Director for the United Nations, International Organizations, Human Rights, and La Francophonie at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The purpose of the visit was to hold in-depth bilateral consultations at the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (BMEIA). The talks focused on substantive and strategic preparations for Austria’s upcoming term on the world organization’s most powerful body in 2027 and 2028.
Both countries reaffirmed their shared commitment to joining forces to defend the rules-based international order and to make the United Nations system more efficient and legitimate. For Vienna, the upcoming term represents a prestigious achievement: In the secret ballot held at the UN General Assembly in New York on June 3, 2026, Austria prevailed alongside Portugal (134 votes) in the first round of voting with 131 votes (with a required two-thirds majority of 127 votes), leaving its competitor Germany (104 votes) behind. Following its terms in 1973–74, 1991–92, and most recently 2009–10, Austria is thus assuming responsibility on the 15-member Security Council for the fourth time—under the guiding principle of “partnership, dialogue, and trust.”
High-Level Debate on “Europe in a Global Disorder”
Just two days after the consultations, a public discussion delving deeper into these topics took place at the French Embassy on Technikerstraße. As part of the renowned “Rencontres de Schwarzenbergplatz” event series, the Embassy and the Austrian-French Center for European Rapprochement (ÖFZ) hosted a high-profile conference titled “Europe in Global Disorder: Multilateralism, Conflicts, and Global Governance.”
Following opening remarks by the French Ambassador to Austria, Matthieu Peyraud, and ÖFZ President Dominique David (who also serves as an advisor to the president of the French Institute of International Relations, Ifri), Thomas Vieregge, foreign policy editor of the daily newspaper “Die Presse,” moderated the evening’s proceedings.
Diplomatic Expertise from Paris and Vienna
On the panel, four experienced leading figures in European diplomacy exchanged their perspectives on current hotspots of crisis and the European Union’s future capacity to act. Ursula Plassnik, former Austrian Foreign Minister and long-time ambassador to Paris and Bern, among other posts; Jan Kickert, a seasoned Austrian diplomat, former UN ambassador in New York, and coordinator of Austria’s Security Council candidacy; Sylvie Bermann, former French ambassador to China, the United Kingdom, and Russia; and Stéphane Gompertz, former French ambassador to Austria and Ethiopia.
During the discussion, the four diplomats explored which concrete bilateral initiatives France, as a permanent member, and Austria, as a newly elected non-permanent member, could undertake during their terms in 2027 and 2028 to safeguard multilateralism against deadlocks and increasing polarization. It became clear that the combination of France’s global influence as a veto power and Austria’s traditional role as a neutral bridge-builder and host country for important UN organizations can provide valuable impetus for peacekeeping, disarmament, and the strengthening of international law.
The conference concluded with closing remarks by ÖFZ Secretary-General Hans Dietmar Schweisgut, followed by a lively question-and-answer session that allowed the Viennese audience to engage directly with the panelists. The events in early November impressively underscored that Paris and Vienna are seeking to join forces to give Europe an audible and influential voice during a phase of global realignment.