Austria’s former chancellor Sebastian Kurz goes on trial this week for allegedly giving false testimony, the highest-profile figure implicated in wide-ranging corruption scandals that have rocked the EU member.
The case marks the first time in more than 30 years that a former chancellor has stood trial.
Once hailed as a “wunderkind” of Europe’s conservatives, Kurz stepped down as chancellor in 2021 following a string of graft accusations, including spending public money for favorable media coverage.
It marked the spectacular fall of the charismatic hard-liner, who became the world’s youngest democratically elected head of government in 2017 at the age of 31.
Kurz, together with two others, will go on trial on Wednesday for providing false testimony to a parliamentary committee probing numerous graft allegations. Kurz has repeatedly dismissed the accusation leveled against him, saying he is keen to prove his innocence in court.
“Like many of the (corruption prosecutors’) accusations, this one will turn out to be false,” Kurz said in a statement in August.
Both Kurz and his lawyer declined to provide new comments when contacted by AFP.
He could face up to three years in jail if found guilty.
The case is being closely watched not only because of Kurz, but because prosecutors have so far failed to land convictions linked to the scandals that have rocked the Alpine country of nine million people since 2019.
The current case stems from a statement Kurz made in 2020 to a parliamentary committee probing corruption.
He is accused of having downplayed his influence in appointing the head of a state-run company.
with AFP