"He worked on this for two years": Shikli meets with senior officials of a party with Nazi roots

Diaspora Minister Amichai Shikli met in Vienna with senior officials of the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ), which has Nazi roots, in a first-of-its-kind meeting. The meeting was coordinated with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar and took place after an apology speech by the party chairman regarding its past.

Diaspora Minister Amichai Shikli of Likud met in Vienna with senior officials of the Austrian far-right party, the Freedom Party (FPÖ), which has Nazi roots. This is the first meeting of its kind between an Israeli minister and senior party officials, a party that Israel officially boycotts. The meeting took place after a precedent-setting speech by party chairman Herbert Kickl in September, in which he apologized to the Jewish people for the party's past, adopted the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and expressed support for moving the Austrian embassy to Jerusalem. Shikli coordinated the meetings with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. Also participating in the meeting were Austrian Parliament President Walter Rosenkranz of the FPÖ, Harald Vilimsky (chairman of the European Patriots Party), MK Ariel Kalner, and Jewish community president Eli Rosen. Shikli emphasized the importance of building bridges through education and highlighted shared values of nationalism, community, and family. Vilimsky thanked Shikli for his efforts. Shikli also participated in the Kristallnacht ceremony in Graz. The headline emphasizes the party's Nazi roots, but the body of the article presents the meeting as part of a planned political process.