Kremlin alarmed by death threats to former Austrian FM
The Kremlin says the death threats made to former Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl must serve as “a wake-up call.”
“As far as we are aware, she has indeed been subjected to persecution, ‘canceling’, and so on,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.
“Completely unbearable conditions have been created for her,” Peskov added.
“It’s a wake-up call for a society that is capable of such [mistreatment].”
Kneissl, who served as foreign minister between 2017 and 2019, told the Washington Post on Tuesday that she had to leave Austria due to death threats. In May, she stepped down from the board of directors of Russian state oil giant Rosneft.
Many countries, including EU members, imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia after it sent troops into Ukraine in late February.
The Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), which nominated Kneissl for the ministerial post, has long been accused of having pro-Russian leanings. The party denies this claim.
Kneissl’s wedding in 2018 made international headlines after Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the ceremony in Austria as a guest and waltzed with Kneissl. She has also written opinion pieces for RT, the last of which was published on January 31.
