Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen is consulting parties in parliament after the failure of coalition talks spearheaded by the far-right Freedom Party. He is exploring options such as a snap election or forming a minority government to move the political process forward domestically.

Coalition negotiations between Austria's right-wing populist Freedom Party (FPÖ) and the conservative People's Party (ÖVP) appeared increasingly fraught as talks continued on Tuesday. Shortly before the new round of talks,

Despite going into the talks with similar objectives on tax and stemming illegal immigration, the two rival right-wing parties clashed over the European Union, sanctions on Russia