Austria agrees to EU peace plan

Chancellor Schuessel has cautiously welcomed the move

Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel has said he will co-operate with a plan to inspect human rights issues in Austria.

But he it made clear that he found the plan, which could bring about the lifting of EU-imposed sanctions, highly unsatisfactory.

The sanctions were imposed in response to the inclusion of the far-right Freedom Party in Austria's coalition government.

The proposal to send a three-man inspection team to Austria was suggested by Portugal - currently holding the EU presidency.

However, Mr Schuessel criticised the plan saying that its proposals were vague and came with no definite commitment to lift the sanctions .

The right solution would have been to lift the sanctions unconditionally now.

Wolfgang Schuessel, Austrian Chancellor

"The decision [by EU members] does not go far enough and is certainly not satisfactory from the Austrian point of view.

"No timetable is envisaged for the report, it is an unclear mandate and there is no clear timetable envisaged for lifting the sanctions," he said.

But the decision, announced by Portugal which hands over the presidency to France, did represent some progress and held out the prospect of a solution, said Mr Schuessel.

The panel will assess Vienna's commitment to "common European values", in particular the rights of minorities, refugees and immigrants.

The 14 EU member countries froze bilateral political contacts with Vienna on 4 February after Mr Schuessel formed a coalition with the Freedom Party, which the EU considers racist and xenophobic.

The standoff has overshadowed EU business since then, and threatens to delay reforms and enlargement of the union.

Disapproval

Mr Schuessel did not rule out the possibility that the government might still go ahead with a referendum asking Austrians to express their disapproval of the sanctions.

This could still be discussed at meeting of the coalition parties next Tuesday.

Joerg Haider, who dominates the extreme right wing Freedom Party despite resigning as leader last month, earlier dismissed the idea of the three-member panel.

Joerg Haider: Skeptical about the plan

"You have to be careful with the three wise men because even the visit of the three wise men to Jesus could not prevent his crucifixion," he said.

Mr Haider believes a referendum would embarrass the other EU countries by demonstrating that Austrians opposed the "unjust" sanctions.

Mr Haider also suggested that Austria should also consider using its veto to block EU decision-making, or take its case to the European Court.

"I have always said that we must use all political, democratic and legal possibilities against the sanctions," he said.