The FPÖ has returned its mandate to the president, the ecologist Alexander Van der Bellen, who must find a solution to get the country out of the political stalemate it has been in since the September 2024 legislative elections.

The collapse on Wednesday of the FPÖ’s talks with the conservative People’s Party (OVP), its only potential coalition partner, sends Austria back to the drawing board four-and-a-half months after a parliamentary election in which the eurosceptic, Russia-friendly FPÖ came first with around 29 per cent.

With the Freedom Party (FPÖ) unable to form a government, Austria is now in an unclear political situation. The leader of the Freedom Party, Herbert Kickl, has called for swift new elections and blamed ÖVP for the collapse, accusing the party of being unwilling to make compromises and playing "power games".

Kickl’s Freedom Party walked away after failure to reach a deal on ministerial positions. Mainstream parties might try again to find an agreement.

Austria's Freedom Party ended coalition talks with the conservatives on Wednesday to form the country's first far right-led government following disagreements over key posts and issues including migration.

Talks to form Austria's first coalition government led by the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) collapsed on Wednesday, days after the FPO's negotiations with the conservative People's Party (OVP) ground to a halt,