Austria
Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel
Foreign Minister Benita Ferrero-Waldner
Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna
Reaction to the Terrorist Attacks
September 11, 2001
Austria reacted with shock and disbelief to today?s terrorist attacks on the United States. Austria?s President Thomas Klestil spoke of an "attack against humanity which surpassed all levels of brutality hitherto known to mankind." Austria's Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel condemned the acts of terror saying that "the world community will not be blackmailed by such abominable crimes. All of Austria feels with the United States today." In order to assess the situation in the aftermath of these terrorist attacks, the Austrian Council of Ministers will hold an emergency session on Wednesday, September 12, at 8 a.m. in Vienna.

Austria's Foreign Minister Benita Ferrero-Waldner, who has canceled a trip to Slovenia planned for tomorrow, will travel to Brussels instead in order to attend an emergency meeting of the European Council of Foreign Ministers. Ferrero-Waldner stated that she was "deeply shocked by the horrible terrorist attacks which can only be interpreted as an attack on humanity as such."

The flags on all federal buildings were flying at half mast while Austrian citizens brought flowers to the US Embassy in Vienna. Austrian telephone companies offered free telephone calls to the United States for all customers.

Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna condemned the attacks committed by "perpetrators blinded by hatred." The bells of Vienna?s largest cathedral, the Stephansdom, were heard throughout Vienna for one minute in memory of the victims of today's attacks.

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