Ukraine in Austria | Ukrainians in Vienna | Bilateral Relations

Austria and Ukraine - Read the latest headlines about bilateral relations in the areas of economy, business, investment, diplomacy, culture and tourism

EBRD Sees Mixed Outlook for CESEE Countries in 2015-16

The outlook for economies in central and south eastern Europe is improving on the back of eurozone monetary easing but prospects further to the east of the transition region have worsened, as the impact of Russia’s recession intensifies.

May 14, 2015

OSCE Troika Urges Advancement in Political Process Aimed at Solving Crisis in Ukraine

Foreign Ministers Dačić, Steinmeier and Burkhalter called for the immediate establishment of Working Groups as provided for in the February 12 Package of Measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements and proposed by Special Representative Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini and the Trilateral Contact Group.

April 28, 2015

OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine Deputy Chief Monitor Alexander Hug to Visit Vienna

The Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine, Alexander Hug, will visit Vienna, Austria, on 5-6 March.

March 5, 2015

Quality of Living Rankings: Vienna Tops the List Again

Vienna remaines at the top of the 2015 Quality of Living Rankings, boasting the best quality of living for expatriates. In the top 5 there are two other European cities, Zurich (place 2) and Munich (place 4). Also Auckland (3rd) and Vancouver (5th) are among the top five cities.

March 4, 2015

Global Peace Index: Austria is Third Most Peaceful Country

The latest Global Peace Index analyses the state of peace around the world. It identifies the most and least peaceful countries, trends in violence and conflict, and calculates the economic impact of violence. The top three most peaceful countries are Iceland, Denmark and Austria. Small and stable democracies make up the top ten most peaceful countries. New Zealand, Canada and Japan are the only non-European countries in the top ten.

March 4, 2015

OSCE Chief Observer at the Russian Checkpoints to Visit Headquarter in Vienna

Paul Picard, Chief OSCE Observer at the Russian Checkpoints Gukovo and Donetsk will address the OSCE Permanent Council. He will report on the situation including movements across the Russian-Ukrainian border at the Russian checkpoints at Gukovo and Donetsk.

February 25, 2015

UniCredit Private Banking Receives Euromoney Awards

UniCredit Private Banking has been recognized for its services, winning 14 awards in different regional and local categories in Euromoney magazine´s Private Banking Survey 2015.

February 10, 2015

Austria is Celebrating 60 Years of United Nations Membership in 2015

Austria became a member of the United Nations in 1955 and is celebrating 60 years of UN membership in 2015. 70 years ago, the United Nations were founded in San Francisco.

February 5, 2015

George Soros: "A New Policy to Rescue Ukraine"

Soros is calling on members of the European Union to behave as countries indirectly at war with Russia and to provide Ukraine with $50 billion to defend itself and kick-start political reforms. Russian President Vladimir Putin's imperial ambition has unintentionally brought into being a new Ukraine that is adamantly opposed to endemic corruption and inefficient government. By offering assistance, Europe can foster an open society in Ukraine and protect itself from Russian aggression.

January 22, 2015

Vienna Congress comsult 2015: "Power of Regions"

“Power of Regions“ is the topic of the Vienna Congress com•sult 2015 which is taking place today at Vienna's House of Industry. Distinguished participants from industry, politics and the business community such as F.W. de Klerk, Mohamed El Baradei, Author Benjamin R. Barber, Václav Klaus and Iain Begg are discussing the principle of regionality and its future in Europe.

January 20, 2015

Ivica Dačić in Vienna: Serbia Takes Over OSCE Chairmanship from Switzerland

The new OSCE Chairperson, Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, spoke today at the inaugural Permanent Council meeting of Serbia's OSCE Chairmanship Vienna. He revealed his Chairmanship priorities pledging to rebuild trust and confidence in the OSCE region of 57 participating states.

January 15, 2015

Serbian Foreign Minister Dačić to Visit Vienna

The new OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbian Foreign Minister Dačić will visit Vienna on Thursday. He will outline the Serbian Chairmanship’s priorities to the OSCE Permanent Council*.

January 13, 2015

Secretary of State John Kerry at the OSCE Ministerial Plenary Session

"It is not our design or desire that we see a Russia isolated through its own actions. In fact, we are convinced that Moscow could rebuild trust and relationships if it simply helps to calm turbulent waters, if it takes steps now to implement the Minsk protocol."

December 5, 2014

OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine Starts the Use of Austrian Drones

The OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) today completed the maiden flight of its unarmed/unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) before members of the media near Mariupol in eastern Ukraine. The OSCE will use unmanned and unarmed drones for the monitoring of the border between Ukraine and Russia.

October 23, 2014

Business Indicator: Dip in Economic Activity Towards End of Year, but Hope Remains for 2015

Bank Austria has published its latest "Business Indicator" on the Austrian economy. The Bank's analysts believe that in light of the increasing uncertainty in recent months, the moderate recovery achieved by the European and therefore the Austrian economy too this year is taking a breather. The Russia/Ukraine crisis and the tensions in the Middle East have blighted sentiment in the Austrian economy at the start of autumn on a broad scale.

October 17, 2014

RBI Revises Expected Provisioning Requirement

Vienna based Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) has revised its outlook for the net provisioning requirement for the current financial year to between EUR 1,500 and EUR 1,700 million, primarily due to higher expected risk costs in Ukraine in light of ongoing political tensions in the region.

September 23, 2014

Business Indicator: Growing Geopolitical Uncertainty Levels the Economic Outlook Down

Bank Austria has published its latest "Business Indicator" on the Austrian economy. The analysts of Bank Austria believe, that after a weak first six months, the economic recovery continues to find it difficult to get out of the starting blocks. The growing uncertainty fuelled by the Russia-Ukraine crisis was reflected in another decline for Bank Austria’s Business Indicator in August. The indicator has been trending downwards slightly for half a year, and now sits at its lowest point since last summer of just 0.2 points.

September 18, 2014

Mid Europa Partners' New Fund to Invest EUR 800 Mln in CEE

Mid Europa Partners, the British private equity firm focused on buyouts in Central & Eastern Europe, announced the final closing of Mid Europa Fund IV at €800 million, complemented by an additional pre-allocated co-investment program of €650 million. Fund IV represents the largest dedicated fund to the CEE Region raised in the last 5 years.

September 5, 2014

Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird Visits Austria and The Balkans

Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today announced that he will visit Croatia, Serbia and Albania. The visit to the Balkans comes after Baird spoke about Ukraine and other global security issues at a high-level forum in Salzburg, organized by the International Peace Institute and the Salzburg Global Seminar.

August 27, 2014

Russia Orders Agricultural Import Bans in Sanction Retaliation

Vladimir Putin signed a decree limiting or banning imports of agricultural products from countries which have imposed sanctions on Russia, the Kremlin's press service announced. It is estimated that following CEE/SEE countries will be hit by the retaliatory sanctions: Romania, Serbia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Brussels, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

August 6, 2014

Analysis: Russia - Assessment of EU and Tightened US Sanctions

Special analysis covering the most recent escalation in terms of Western economic and financial sanctions against Russia: EU and US sending bold diplomatic signals without inflicting too much near-term economic and financial damage. In comparison to the US sanctions by the EU are capped in duration. Recent escalation adds to uncertainty in doing business with Russia, which is an ultimate goal of sanctions. Near-term impact of current sanctions still limited, which implies a risk that they may remain for longer.

July 31, 2014

Austrian FDI: Current Developments 1Q 2014

In the first quarter of 2014, Austrian FDI abroad reached a value of 2.8 billion euros, which is less by about 30% than in the same period of 2013. Foreign direct investments in the same period into Austria stood at 1.4 billion euros. This is about 37% less than in the same period of last year.

July 29, 2014

Cost of Living Rankings: CEE Capitals Cheaper, Vienna is 32nd Most Expensive City

The Mercer's 2014 Cost of Living Rankings have been published and cover 211 cities across five continents. While Western European cities have all risen in the rankings mainly due to the strengthening of the Euro against the US dollar, most cities in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), however have fallen in the ranking as a result of local currencies depreciating against the US dollar. Bratislava (#84), Prague (#92), Kiev (#98), Ljubljana (#116), Zagreb (#120), Budapest (#135), Warsaw (#142), Belgrade (#184).

July 25, 2014

Analysis: The South Stream Gas Pipeline

Due to the signing of the South Stream agreement between OMV and Gazprom for the Austrian part of the pipeline during Putin's visit to Vienna, we take a look at the background of the project.

June 25, 2014

Forecast for CESEE Countries (Webinar)

Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe (CESEE) have been strongly affected by the economic crisis. However now there are signs of an improving economic climate and growth rates will again be above the EU average. The current situation in the Ukraine and potential difficulties between the EU and Russia constitute a downside risk.

June 24, 2014

CEE-Initiative: Strengthening Investment Fund Business in Central- and Eastern Europe (CEE)

The Hungarian association BAMOSZ and the Austrian association VÖIG initiated a closer collaboration and tighter co-operation between fund associations in CEE, the so-called „CEE Initiative“. The member associations of the „CEE Initiative“ are (in alphabetical order): Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine.

June 16, 2014

Austria: Western Balkans Representatives are Meeting in Vienna

The Western Balkans Conference and the Central European Initiative (CEI) Ministerial Meeting are currently discussing questions regarding the EU enlargement, the role of the EU as a peace project and the economic situation in the Western Balkans.

June 3, 2014

BSH Vienna is Partially Taken Over by German BSH Group

With the goal of strengthening its international market presence, the TROX Group acquired parts of BSH Group.

May 31, 2014

Yakunin: Broad-Gauge System from Vladivostock to Vienna to Be Established

Vladimir Yakunin, head of the Russian Railways (RZD), wants to stick to his strategic plans and establish an uninterrupted rail link between Vienna and Vladivostock.

May 24, 2014

Sevelda: “Russia Still Crucial Market”

In the light of the close ties with regard to economic and energy relations with Russia Karl Sevelda, CEO of Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) warns about the tightening of penalties against Russia.

May 23, 2014

Switzerland: IMD Releases the World Competitiveness Yearbook Ranking 2014

The US leads, Europe recovers, and big emerging markets struggle.

May 22, 2014

Gas Deal: China to Invest $22Bln, Russia to Invest $55Bln

Russia’s overall investment on delivering gas to China is $55 billion and China’s investment is estimated at around $22 billion according to a contract signed by the two countries in Shanghai, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday.

May 21, 2014

Exporttag: Meet All Austrian Trade Delegates at the Export Day 2014

On June 24, the Export Day (Exporttag) of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKO) will take place in Vienna. Economic delegates from all over the world will be present.

May 20, 2014

Journalism Prize “Writing for CEE 2014” Inviting Submissions

Journalists from all over Europe are invited to submit entries.

May 19, 2014

“Romania Can Never Become the China of Europe”

Stabilization in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is becoming stronger. However, the political crisis in Ukraine is causing a feeling of insecurity among the population.

May 15, 2014

Bank Austria's Ukrainian Subsidiary Not Yet To Be Sold

Because of the crisis in Ukraine the planned sale of Bank Austria's Ukrainian subsidiary has been halted.

May 13, 2014

German Retailer Metro Faces Massive Losses in CEE

Sales in CEE declined 14.8 percent last year for German retail and wholesale enterprise Metro Group.

May 9, 2014

MOL: Oil Supply to Hungary not Endangered

According to Hungarian oil and gas enterprise MOL, the supply to Hungary is not endangered by the delivery stop of Russian oild products passing through Ukraine.

May 9, 2014

Sanction Imposed on Expobank

Russian-Latvian Expobank was added to the Canada’s black list.

May 9, 2014

EU Council Trying to Find a Way Out of Ukraine Crisis

Ahead of the European Council, which is currently taking place in Vienna under the Austrian presidency, Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz declared not to expect a solution for the conflict in Ukraine.

May 6, 2014

Bank Austria: “Russia is Still Profitable”

According to Vice CEO of Bank Austria and head of business operations in CEE Gianni Franco Papa, business in Russia is not yet affected by the political crisis in Crimea.

May 2, 2014

Polish Banking Sector: “Too Early for Recovery”

The Polish banking sector has to be patient for economic recovery to show on their results.

April 29, 2014

Russia: Austrian Banks Demonstrate Serenity

Austrian banks try to take the downgrade of Russian sovereign bonds with composure. According to spokespersons, the downgrade has no danger potential.

April 26, 2014

RBI Gets Rid of Public Shareholder

After tough negotiations with the Austrian financial market supervision, the Vienna-listed CESEE lender Raiffeisen Bank International repays about the half of the participation capital.

April 25, 2014

Raiffeisen Bank International AG - SWOT Analysis & Company Report May 2014

This new report contains in depth information and data about Raiffeisen Bank International AG and its operations and markets. It contains an overview, business and strategy description, financial ratios, valuation & forecast data and a SWOT analysis.

April 25, 2014

„Brussels Must Reconsider Enlargement Policy“

Austrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sebastian Kurz criticized the EU´s approach towards Ukraine. However, the EU has to develop further.

April 25, 2014

Poland Fears War in Ukraine

According to Poland´s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Poland should prepare for the worst case in Ukraine.

April 25, 2014

Business in Ukraine Becomes More Riskful

Insurance companies warn export companies that wanting to arrange for insurance of defaults in payment obligations or political unrest right now is coming too late.

April 22, 2014

Poland: Economic Upswing Endangered by Conflict in Ukraine

In general, Poland´s economic growth accelerates. However, the recent developments in Poland´s neighbor country are a substantial risk factor.

April 18, 2014

Republic of Austria Liable for Domestic Banks in Ukraine and Russia

The Austrian Clearing Bank (OeKB) has assumed liabilities in the amount of € 4.0n in Russia and Ukraine. Besides the political risks, banks operating in Russia have to fear economic risks too.

April 17, 2014