Austria: Over 20 far-right MPs leave Parliament during Zelenskyy's speech
Over 20 far-right Austrian lawmakers left the Parliament on Thursday during a virtual speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the BBC, the MPs from the Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) argued that Zelenskyy's address violated Austria's "permanent neutrality" status. The pro-Russia party's politicians, who walked out of the Lower House, even warned of some sort of protest before the speech.
Watch: Austrian MPs walk out of Parliament
What does 'permanent neutrality' law say?
Austria's "permanent neutrality" law, which has been a part of its constitution since 1955, says, "Austria will never in the future accede to any military alliances nor permit the establishment of military bases of foreign states on her territory." Meanwhile, Zelenskyy in his address emphasized that it was impossible to hold a "morally neutral stance against evil," reported the Ukrainian newspaper Ukrainska Pravda.
Zelenskyy invites Austrian lawmakers to Ukraine
Per BBC, Austria has declined military assistance to Ukraine, but said it supports Kyiv politically. Wolfgang Sobotka, the president of Austria's Lower House of Parliament, has pledged more humanitarian and financial assistance to Ukraine. On his part, Zelenskyy thanked Austria for its help in clearing land mines and invited MPs to travel to Ukraine to see the destruction caused by Russia.
