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Iran in Austria | Iranians in Vienna | Bilateral Relations
Austria and Iran - Read the latest headlines about bilateral relations in the areas of economy, business, investment, diplomacy, culture and tourism
Air Travel to Austria: Further Flights Stopped Due to COVID-19 Spread
To contain the coronavirus, direct flights from Austria to Iran, South Korea and the northern Italian airports of Bologna and Milan will be discontinued in the next two weeks. Passengers from third countries require a medical certificate. This was announced by the Federal Government during a press conference broadcast nationwide. Details as follows.
March 7, 2020
Austrian Airlines Cancels Further Flights to Italy, China and Iran Still Suspended
Due to falling demand for flights to Italy as a result of the corona crisis, Austrian Airlines is cancelling 40 percent of its flights to Italy in March and April. Flights to Tehran (Iran) will continue to be suspended until 30 April 2020 and flights to Beijing and Shanghai (China) until 24 April 2020.
March 3, 2020
COVID-19: Risk Assessment on Travel and Visits to Austria
The coronavirus outbreak has now reached Austria and the disease is spreading further. What is the risk of infection when travelling in and to Austria?
February 28, 2020
Iran Nuclear Agreement: Rouhani and Zarif Met Schallenberg
Austria's Foreign Minister Schallenberg met with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif and President Hassan Rouhani in Iran to mediate in the nuclear dispute. Rouhani himself has compared the US sanctions against Iran with the corona virus, saying that fear of it is greater than reality.
February 23, 2020
Reception of Austria-Accredited Ambassadors in the Federal Chancellery
The new Austrian Federal Government is in favour of continuing multilateral cooperation, especially in cooperation with the European countries.
January 31, 2020
Traditional New Year Reception for the Diplomatic Corps in Vienna
The Federal President's Reception for the Diplomatic Corps annually gathers all diplomatic representatives in Vienna in the Ceremonial Hall of the Hofburg.
January 17, 2020
War in Iran: Austria for EU Mediation Role
In view of the tense situation in the Middle East, Austrian Foreign Minister Schallenberg pleads at a special meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels for a return to dialogue, the continuation of the nuclear agreement and a possible mediation role for the EU.
January 10, 2020
Aircraft Crash: Austrian Airlines Cancels Tehran Flights
Austrian Airlines flights to the Iranian capital are cancelled for the time being. The reason is the unclear security situation in Iranian airspace.
January 10, 2020
Foreign Ministry Advises Against Travelling to Iran
There is currently no official travel warning from the Austrian Foreign Ministry, although it advises against travel that is not absolutely necessary.
January 10, 2020
Nuclear Deal: Austria Disappointed at Iran's Behaviour
The result of a meeting of the Council of EU Foreign Ministers on regional developments in the Gulf States and Iran is to get Iran to comply again with the agreements of the Vienna Agreement.
November 12, 2019
Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg at UN General Assembly
Tight schedule at the Annual General Meeting in New York City. Meetings with counterparts from Iran, Javad Zarif, Belarus, Vladimir Makei and Iraq, Mohamed Ali Alhakim and the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross Peter Maurer. A speech to the UN General Assembly is scheduled for Thursday. The strengthening of Vienna as a UN location is also on the agenda.
September 24, 2019
Multilateralism: Austrian Delegation at UN General Assembly in New York City
Federal Chancellor Brigitte Bierlein is attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York together with Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg and Sustainability Minister Maria Patek. Schallenberg speaks as Austria's representative.
September 20, 2019
IAEA Nuclear Watchdog Chief Yukiya Amano Died at 72
The boss of the Vienna-based IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency Yukiya Amano is dead. The Japanese was 72 years old. The longtime Japanese diplomat held the IAEA's top job since December 2009. The cause of his death is unclear. According to IAEA, Amano passed away as a result of his illness. Amano’s death comes at a time of increasing concerns and escalating tensions over Iran’s nuclear program.
July 22, 2019 · Updated: July 24, 2019; 13:00
Updated Directory of Foreign Ambassadors in Austria 2019
Below you will find the updated Vindobona.org list of foreign ambassadors and representatives of the bilateral and multilateral missions and representations in Vienna, Austria (including description of persons, pictures, CVs, etc.).
November 19, 2018 · Updated: July 19, 2019; 11:50
Iran: Last Chance to Save Nuclear Deal Failed in Vienna
The latest round of negotiations to save the nuclear agreement with Iran has remained unresolved in Vienna. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi noted after the meeting, which lasted several hours, that despite some progress made at the meeting, Iran would probably continue on its path towards a partial withdrawal from the nuclear programme.
June 28, 2019
Massive Slump in Austrian Exports to Iran
Trade between Iran and Austria is shrinking. Austrian exports to Iran fell by 11.1 % in 2018, as the Foreign Trade Centre Tehran of the Chamber of Commerce reported. In addition, a further decline is expected after the negative GDP growth in 2018/2019. In addition, there are fears of a further currency decline of the rial and rising inflation.
June 24, 2019
Austrian Foreign Minister Schallenberg at EU Foreign Affairs Council for the First Time
In Luxembourg, Federal Minister Alexander Schallenberg represented Austria for the first time at the FAC Foreign Affairs Council and the Council of the European Union.
June 21, 2019
40 Years of the UN in Vienna - The Tireless Commitment of António Guterres
UN Secretary General António Guterres completed a busy programme when he came to Vienna for the 40th anniversary celebrations and the R20 Austria World Summit. The VIC Vienna International Centre is the place where, with the help of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), the 193 member states, 15 Vienna-based UN organisations and more than 5000 people from 125 countries from around the world are bound together.
May 31, 2019
Vienna Sticks to Iran Agreement
At the Eastern Partnership meeting in Brussels, the foreign ministers of the EU states discussed the rescue efforts for the nuclear agreement with Iran, specifically the maintenance of trade relations despite US sanction threats. Austria's Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl demanded that the nuclear agreement with Iran should be an EU priority.
May 16, 2019
Leaders Discuss Azerbaijani-Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict in Vienna
The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan met in Vienna for the first time under the auspices of the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group to discuss the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The two heads of state also met with Austrian President Van der Bellen and Austrian Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.
April 5, 2019
New Austrian Foreign Trade Strategy: Growth, Jobs, Prosperity
In a joint event in the Aula of Sciences, the Federal Government's new foreign trade strategy was presented by Economics Minister Margarete Schramböck, Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl and President of the Chamber of Commerce Harald Mahrer. The key points of the strategy are the following: Perspective, value orientation, location effect, focal points, future orientation, communication, efficient coordination.
December 20, 2018
Austria's State Leaders Receive Authoritarian Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (Abd al-Fattah as-Sisi) also visited the Federal President, the Federal Chancellor and the Federal Parliament on the fringes of the EU-Africa Forum (High-Level Forum Africa-Europe), at which he received a EUR 350m commitment from the EIB to finance the expansion of the Cairo Metro. Every meeting emphasised that bilateral relations between Austria and Egypt were very good and that cooperation was to be extended. The former General, who is controversial because of his authoritarian style of government, had already made a clear rejection of the so-called "disembarkation platforms" in Egypt to the EU Council President Sebastian Kurz in Cairo during the summer.
December 19, 2018
Sebastian Kurz: EU and Switzerland to Intensify Relations Further
Federal Chancellor Kurz held a working meeting with Swiss President Alain Berset in Bern. The meeting focused on, among other topics, an assessment of Brexit, the Western Balkans, the nuclear agreement with Iran, relations with Russia and the priorities of the Austrian EU Presidency.
November 22, 2018
Nuclear Controversy: Iran Seeking Austria's Support
Austria's EU Presidency, the future of the nuclear agreement and the desire to strengthen bilateral economic and cultural exchange were the focus of a visit by Iranian parliamentarians to the Austrian Parliament.
September 25, 2018
Review of the State Visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Austria
After the visit in March 2016, which was cancelled at short notice, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was on a state visit to Vienna this week, accompanied by massive anti-Iran protests. The aim of the visit was a joint commitment to the Iran nuclear deal after the deal was approved in Vienna three years ago. The visit was overshadowed by a diplomatic case involving an employee of the Iranian embassy in Vienna, who had been arrested last weekend by the German judicial authorities on the basis of a European arrest warrant on suspicion of terrorism.
July 5, 2018
Meet Kazem Gharib Abadi Iran's New Envoy to the IAEA and the International Organizations in Vienna
H.E. Kazem Gharibabadi, the new Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran, presented his credentials to the International Organizations in Vienna.
July 3, 2018
Nuclear Deal: Iranian President Rouhani Lobbies for Austria
The Federal Chancellery has now officially confirmed that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will come to Vienna on 4 July for an official visit. Of course, the visit is mainly about the nuclear deal. After the USA's exit, there is considerable pressure on Rouhani.
June 19, 2018
Hassan Rouhani Expected in Vienna in Early July
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (حسن روحانی) will meet his Austrian counterpart Alexander Van der Bellen in Vienna on 4 July according to media reports.
May 30, 2018
Iran Talks Back at the Palais Coburg in Vienna
The struggle for the prolongation of the nuclear agreement with Iran continues. On Tehran's initiative, the Joint Commission is meeting in Vienna at Palais Coburg to discuss measures to support the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear program. Tehran wants to decide on compliance with the nuclear deal in the coming weeks.
May 25, 2018
US Termination of the Iran Agreement: Major Effects on Austrian Exports Expected
The Austrian Federal Economic Chamber fears that the Trump decision will have a massive negative impact on the Iran business of Austrian companies. It will probably be extraordinarily difficult in the future to establish the necessary payment channels for legitimate transactions.
May 17, 2018
Iran-Deal Withdrawal: Consequences for Iran-Austrian Economics Relations
About 50 Austrian companies have branches in Iran. Austrian exports to Iran rose by 9.2 percent to 301 million euros in 2017; imports increased by 18.5 percent to 119 million euros. A JCPOA supported only by the EU, Russia, China and Iran is not sufficient in the medium and long term to create the necessary investments and renewals in Iran. Without the US on board, international banks and large companies will continue to shy away from activities in Iran. Secondary sanctions will contribute to this.
May 11, 2018
Trump's Iran Deal Withdrawal Increases Uncertainty for Austrian Companies
Austrian companies react in a wait-and-see manner. The withdrawal of the US from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Iran means in practice that the suspension of sanctions will no longer be extended. Considerations range from an immediate halt to activities in Iran to the longest possible active participation within the new sanctions framework. It is unlikely that Austria's exports will reach the 300 million euro mark of the previous year.
May 11, 2018
Iran-Deal - Austrian Oberbank Distances Itself from Framework Credit Agreement with Tehran
Only last year, the Upper Austrian Oberbank was the first European bank to sign a framework credit agreement with Iran. After the USA's withdrawal from the nuclear treaty, the bank is now under pressure and intends to wait and see. The bank says it could certainly take two weeks for a final solution to be found and officially agreed.
May 11, 2018
20 Years Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT): Ministerial Meeting at VIC
Marking the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), a Ministerial Meeting was held at Vienna International Center. Hosting some 40 international organizations, Austria is a hub for the promotion of peace, safety and security, sustainable development and the fight against crime, drug abuse and terrorism.
June 20, 2016
Iran Appoints Ebadollah Molaie as New Ambassador to Austria
Ebadollah Molaie has been appointed as Iran’s new ambassador to Austria, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said recently.
February 19, 2016
Austrian Foreign Ministry Welcomes Completion of Next Phase of the Vienna Agreement with Iran
The Austrian Foreign Minister welcomed the successful completion of the preparatory phase for the implementation of the Vienna Agreement between the E3/EU+3 and Iran. He hopes that Iran will assume a constructive role in resolving regional conflicts.
January 19, 2016
Report: Drug Money and Opiate Trafficking on the Balkan Route
A report recently launched by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) shows that the total value of illicit heroin and opium trafficked from Afghanistan to Western Europe through the Balkans amounts to some $28 billion every year. Sixty-five per cent of this total ($18 billion) is generated in Western and Central Europe.
December 14, 2015
Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Council of Ministers Places 27 New Diplomats at Head of Embassies
The Council of Ministers of the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided to place 27 new Austrian diplomats at head of Austrian Embassies worldwide.
December 10, 2015
Linhart: “Solidarity With Persecuted Religious Minorities in the Middle East”
The Secretary General for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Michael Linhart received the Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Babylon, Louis Raphael I Sako, and the Chaldean Catholic Archbishop of Teheran, Ramzi Garmou for talks on the situation of religious minorities in the Middle East, including in Iran. “The commitment to freedom of religion and the protection of religious minorities, especially of persecuted Christians in the region is a focal point of Austria’s foreign policy”, Secretary General Linhart outlined: “Therefore, we seek the dialogue with interested partners. The religious leaders play an important role in this, as religions must be a part of a lasting solution.”
November 27, 2015
Foreign Minister Kurz Met Adel al-Jubeir and King Salman bin Abdulaziz
During his first visit to Saudi Arabia, Austria's Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz was received both by his Saudi Arabian counterpart Adel al-Jubeir, as well as King Salman bin Abdulaziz. The talks included besides bilateral issues - which also include economic relations - the future of Syria, the danger of the "Islamic State" and human rights.
November 27, 2015
Linhart: “Foreign Policy Should Focus on Stabilization of Neighbouring Regions”
“The European foreign policy must focus more of its attention on the neighborhood, the stabilization thereof – and in the case of the Western Balkans, their way towards the EU – has to be our European priority”, Secretary General for Austrian Foreign Affairs, Dr. Michael Linhart declared on the occasion of the 19th Europe Forum of the Austria Institute for Europe and Security Policy (AIES) in the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna
November 18, 2015
Iranian Foreign Minister to Participate in Syria Conference in Vienna
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will attend the conference on Syria in Vienna on Friday. This has been confirmed today by the Foreign Ministry in Tehran, according to the official news agency ISNA. Iran will meet in Vienna not only to Russia and the USA, but also to its nemesis Saudi Arabia.
October 28, 2015
How Can Exporters Benefit from the "Go-International Initiative" of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce?
Even in a challenging global economic environment, exports remain the driving force behind the Austrian economy. The go-international initiative of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce encourages companies to step across the border by offering advisory services, events and support, as well as making it easier for existing exporters to enter additional foreign markets.
October 19, 2015
Austrian President Fischer is First European Head of State to Visit Iran
Austrian President Heinz Fischer is the first European head of state to visit Iran following the successful conclusion of nuclear talks between the Islamic Republic and the P5+1.
September 7, 2015
IAEA's Position and Road-Map Regarding Iran's Nuclear Program
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran) agree, in continuation of their cooperation under the Framework for Cooperation, to accelerate and strengthen their cooperation and dialogue aimed at the resolution, by the end of 2015, of all past and present outstanding issues that have not already been resolved by the IAEA and Iran.
July 14, 2015
Iran Nuclear Deal: Joint Statement by Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister
The joint statement by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif calls on the world community "to support the implementation of this historic effort". "The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is a balanced deal that respects the interests of all sides. It is also complex, detailed and technical."
July 14, 2015
Iran Nuclear Deal: Historic Agreement in Vienna
The so-called P5+1 - the US, UK, France, China and Russia plus Germany and the EU have reached a "historic" deal with Iran on limiting Iranian nuclear activity in return for the lifting of international economic sanctions. The deal, known as the "Comprehensive Joint Plan of Action", was signed today in Vienna.
July 14, 2015
Historic Iran Nuclear Deal Likely to be Announced Early Tuesday
Officials negotiating in Vienna's Palais Coburg say nothing is confirmed, but a deal will possibly come in the early hours of the morning. Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said an Iran nuclear deal would not be ready to be announced July 13, as China’s Foreign Minister urged the P5+1 and Iran to finalize the accord.
July 13, 2015
OPEC in Vienna Decides to Keep Production Unchanged
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) today hosted its 167th Meeting of the OPEC Conference at the OPEC Secretariat in Vienna. Participants included OPEC Heads of Delegation and the Secretary General. There were some expectations that the production goal of 30 million barrels a day could move higher. However, the key issue the market was looking for will remain at 30 million barrels a day.
June 5, 2015
OPEC Member Countries Discuss Global Petroleum Development Strategies in Vienna
The 6th OPEC International Seminar, with the theme "Petroleum - An Engine for Global Development", aims to build on the previous events from the past decade. It is currently taking place at the Imperial Hofburg Palace in Vienna. The Seminar intends to underpin OPEC’s commitment to stabilize the international oil market by promoting cooperation and dialogue with stakeholders around the world.
June 3, 2015