Austrian chancellor reaffirms pro-European stance in first official trip to Brussels

BRUSSELS - Austria's new Chancellor Sebastian Kurz Tuesday reaffirmed his government's pro-European stance in his first official trip to Brussels, in an attempt to dispel concerns over the line-up of his government.

Speaking at a joint press conference with European Commission President Jean Claude-Juncker and EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations following their meeting, Kurz stressed that Austria is a pro-European country.

"We want to make contribution to a strong European Union. We are looking forward to that, "said the 31-year-old Kurz, the youngest leader in Europe.

For his part, Juncker said Kurz's first visit to EU institutions "sent a positive signal."

"This government has a clear pro-European stance, it's most important to me," Juncker said.

He also clarified that it was the EU's 14 member states rather than EU institutions which slapped sanctions against Austria in 2000, when the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) first entered the government.