The

Austrians Austrians (, ) are the citizens and Nationality, nationals of Austria. The English term ''Austrians'' was applied to the population of Archduchy of Austria, Habsburg Austria from the 17th or 18th century. Subsequently, during the 19th century, ...

and Turks have had relations with each other dating back centuries, from the modern-day

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

to their

predecessor state Succession of states is a concept in international relations regarding a successor state that has become a sovereign state over a territory (and populace) that was previously under the sovereignty of another state. The theory has its roots in 19th ...

s, the

Habsburg Empire The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

and

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

respectively. Having fought a number of

wars War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of State (polity), states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or betwe ...

, they fought alongside each other as

allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

before their empires simultaneously dissolved due to their defeats. Today, both countries are relatively smaller than their historical empires. Relations between the modern-day states are relatively normal, however Austrian opposition — particularly among

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

and

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

parties — to the

Accession of Turkey to the European Union Turkey is negotiating its accession to the European Union (EU) as a member state, following its application to become a full member of the European Economic Community (EEC), the predecessor of the EU, on 14 April 1987. After the ten founding ...

as well as Turkish immigration to Austria has become a point of tension. Both countries are members of the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

. Austria is an EU

member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

and Turkey is an EU

candidate A candidate, or nominee, is a prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position. For example, one can be a candidate for membership in a group (sociology), group or election to an offic ...

. Turkey is a member of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

. Austria is not a member of NATO.

The Habsburgs and the Ottomans

From the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

until the twentieth century, today's Austria and Turkey were the core regions within much larger empires. Austria was the seat of the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful Dynasty, dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout ...

and Turkey was ruled by the House of Osman (also known as the

Ottoman Dynasty The Ottoman dynasty () consisted of the members of the imperial House of Osman (), also known as the Ottomans (). According to Ottoman tradition, the family originated from the Kayı tribe branch of the Oghuz Turks, under the leadership of Os ...

). The Habsburg and Ottoman states were both large multi-ethnic conglomerations sustained by conquest. These rival empires waged frequent wars against each other over control of much

Central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...

and

the Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

. During its peak, the

threatened to conquer the Austrian capital of

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

twice: in 1529 and

1683 Events January–March * January 5 – The Brandenburger-African Company, of the German state of Brandenburg, signs a treaty with representatives of the Ahanta tribe (in modern-day Ghana), to establish the fort and settlement ...

. After the second Ottoman defeat at Vienna and the end of the

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War () or The Last Crusade, also called in Ottoman sources The Disaster Years (), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League (1684), Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lith ...

in 1699; however, the Habsburgs gained the upper hand, and captured

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

and

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

from the Ottomans. After these gains, Austria was no longer able to advance into the Balkans; because of the rival influence of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, in a stalemate and dispute known as the Eastern Question. While Ottoman control in the Balkans declined, the Austrians were not able to annex any new territory until Bosnia in 1908, and even that caused a diplomatic crisis (the

Bosnian crisis The Bosnian Crisis, also known as the Annexation Crisis (, ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Aneksiona kriza, Анексиона криза) or the First Balkan Crisis, erupted on 5 October 1908 when Austria-Hungary announced the annexation of Bosnia and Herzeg ...

). In the interim, Russia had helped several nationalities in the Balkans to rebel against the Ottomans and create separate nation-states in the Balkans. After the culmination of all the changes from the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

(1821–1829) to the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans, Balkan states in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan states of Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg), Greece, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Montenegro, M ...

(1912–1913) the Austrian and Ottoman empires no longer bordered each other. This allowed both to join the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,; ; , ; were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I (1914–1918). It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulga ...

as allies during the

. The defeat of the Central Powers led to the overthrow of both monarchies and the collapse of both empires.

Austrian and Turkish republics

and

currently have normal relations with each other. However, there are some minor complications.

, which has approximately 250,000 Turks living there (about 3% of Austria's population), has been at the forefront of blocking Turkey's accession to the European Union, particularly among conservative and right-wing parties such as the

Austrian People's Party The Austrian People's Party ( , ÖVP ) is a Christian-democratic and liberal-conservative political party in Austria. Since January 2025, the party has been led by Christian Stocker (as an acting leader). It is currently the second-largest p ...

and

Freedom Party of Austria The Freedom Party of Austria (, FPÖ) is a political party in Austria, variously described as far-right, right-wing populist, national-conservative, and Eurosceptic. It has been led by Herbert Kickl since 2021. It is the largest of five part ...

which maintains a significant political presence.

Austria's position in Turkey's accession to the European Union

On 10 November 2010, relations between the two countries were excessively tensed after the Turkish ambassador to Austria, Kadri Ecvet Tezcan, accused the Austrian public and political elite of xenophobia and called on international organisations with buildings in

to relocate to another country. The Freedom Party called for the suspension of diplomatic relations and for stopping EU accession talks with Ankara. In December 2017, Turkey accused the incoming Austrian government of discrimination and racism, after it would not agree to Ankara joining the EU. In addition, Turkey slammed the EU for not condemning the Austrian government's approach. Also, the Turkish foreign ministry accused the incoming government of “dishonesty,” and warned that their approach would bring Austria “to the brink of losing Turkey’s friendship” and be met with “the reaction that it deserves.” In December 2017, then–Austrian Chancellor

Sebastian Kurz Sebastian Kurz (; born 27 August 1986) is an Austrian former politician who served twice as Chancellor of Austria, first from 2017 to 2019 and then again from 2020 to 2021. Kurz was born and raised in Meidling, Vienna. He entered politics by ...

called for the end of accession negotiations between the EU and Turkey. In September 2023, Austrian Chancellor

Karl Nehammer Karl Nehammer (; born 18 October 1972) is an Austrian politician who served as the 28th chancellor of Austria from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP), he previously was Minister of the Interior (Austria), Minister of th ...

, in an interview with the German newspaper

Die Welt (, ) is a German national daily newspaper, published as a broadsheet by Axel Springer SE. is the flagship newspaper of the Axel Springer publishing group and it is considered a newspaper of record in Germany. Its leading competitors are the ...

, called for the termination of full membership negotiations between the EU and Turkey and the development of a new concept within the relations between the EU and Turkey.

Resident diplomatic missions

* Austria has an embassy in

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

and a consulate-general in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. * Turkey has an embassy in

and consulates-general in

Bregenz Bregenz (; ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost states of Austria, state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switzerland in the wes ...

and

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

. File:Embassy of Austria to Turkey (Амбасада Аустрије у Турској).jpg, Embassy of Austria in Ankara File:Csm Palais Yenikoy 1 247e989bf0.jpg, Consulate-General of Austria in Istanbul File:Botschaft 014.jpg, Embassy of Turkey in Vienna File:Official residence at Lochau Tannenbach.jpg, Consulate-General of Turkey in Bregenz File:Türkisches Konsulat - Salzburg.jpg, Consulate-General of Turkey in Salzburg

References

External links