Xi congratulates Austrian president on his reelection

President Xi Jinping congratulated Alexander Van der Bellen on Monday on his reelection as federal president of Austria, saying that he stands ready to boost bilateral ties with the Austrian leader.

In his message, Xi said he highly values developing China-Austria relations and is willing to work with Van der Bellen to push for new progress in the China-Austria friendly strategic partnership in order to bring benefits to the two countries and their peoples.

Van der Bellen secured a second six-year term in office on Sunday by winning a clear majority of votes in an election and avoiding a runoff, according to projections based on almost all votes cast except postal ballots.

The 78-year-old former leader of the Greens has garnered broad popularity by projecting calm during times of national crisis, including the collapse of the government in 2019 and the resignation of chancellor Sebastian Kurz a year ago over corruption allegations that Kurz denies.

The far-right Freedom Party was the only party in Parliament to field a candidate against Van der Bellen, who won a much tighter race against a Freedom Party opponent in 2016. Prominent figures from all other parties in Parliament backed the president.

The Austrian president performs a largely ceremonial role, but also has sweeping powers that mean overseeing periods of transition and turbulence. The president is the commander in chief of the army and can sack the whole government or the chancellor.

"A majority is easily said, but an absolute majority means more votes than all others (candidates) combined, and one must take that very seriously. I was not at all sure that it would happen but it did, and I am very pleased," Van der Bellen told national broadcaster ORF.