Inaugural lecture of the Vranitzky Chair

Speech by Ambassador and BKF Board Member Dr Eva Nowotny on 24 November 2014 at the University of Vienna

Magnificence, Mr Federal Chancellor, Professor Gries, ladies and gentlemen,

I am delighted to have the opportunity to share a few thoughts with you on this festive occasion and thank you very much for the invitation. I feel particularly connected to the Vranitzky Chair in several ways - on the one hand as Chair of the University Council of the University of Vienna, where this Chair is anchored, and as a member of the Board of the Bruno Kreisky Forum for International Dialogue, which actively supports the Chair. On the other hand, and above all, because I had the good fortune and privilege of working in the office of Federal Chancellor Vranitzky from 1986 to 1992. My memories of those years also bring me full circle to today's event and the topic of Professor Gries' lecture. Three foreign policy developments of particular importance characterised these years: firstly, Austria's path into the European Union together with Sweden and Finland; secondly, the collapse of the communist system of rule in Central and Eastern Europe, the fall of the Iron Curtain, the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and finally the disintegration of the Soviet Union and its transformation into the Commonwealth of Independent States; and thirdly, particularly relevant to the topic of this evening, the beginning of the bloody disintegration of Yugoslavia.

Political opponents have often and gladly polemicised that we did not recognise the reality at the time, or misjudged the situation, and tried desperately to maintain Yugoslavia as a common state - an accusation that is not justified, but which is nevertheless repeatedly and gladly circulated in the media even today. On the one hand, it was a result of geographical proximity, but even more a result of the numerous and intensive contacts that Austria had at all political levels, from the federal government to local mayors, that we were aware earlier than many others of what was brewing ominously in our neighbouring country. We were also aware that in view of the political tensions, but also the historical baggage that all Balkan states carry with them, an explosion of violence and a bloody conflict was to be feared. It was Federal Chancellor Vranitzky who, from the late 1980s onwards, used every opportunity in his international contacts to draw attention to this imminent danger. As we know, there was very little European or international interest in this crisis in the run-up to the war.

Winston Churchill allegedly (and I emphasise allegedly because there are so many popular quotes from Winston Churchill) once said in a parliamentary speech: „The problem with the Balkans is that they have always produced more history than they can consume.“ Now this is something that can be said about many states, including Austria. But anyone who has studied the history of this region, and in particular the violent disintegration of the old Yugoslavia, realises that history has played a particularly damning role here. There are myths at play here that reach far back into the past, appeals to past greatness, revenge for never-forgotten defeats and so on, which are passed on from one generation to the next and thus live on forever.

It is to be hoped that the offer and subsequent realisation of membership of the European Union will succeed in reducing this ballast and, above all, in offering the young population of these states other orientations, other perspectives and other ways of thinking. The fact that the European Union has opened up the prospect of accession to all states in the so-called Western Balkans confirms that it is aware of this responsibility and also recognises the importance of EU membership for the security, stability, economic development and modernisation of the entire region. It would also be more than desirable if this Vranitzky Chair could be used as a research project to develop other forms of collective historical memory for the entire region. We know very well how difficult this is, and I only have to remind you of the decades-long work of the so-called Wandruszka Commission for the joint Austrian-Italian history book. I wish Professor Gries every success in this endeavour.

* Franz Vranitzky Chair for European Studies, Transdisciplinary professorship at the Institute for Contemporary History and the Institute for Journalism and Communication Studies at the University of Vienna in cooperation with the Sigmund Freud Private University of Vienna