Comment by cleancoder0 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by cleancoder0 | Hacker News Reader

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This is unfortunately highly unlikely. A lot of EU politics depends on the pockets of rich Russian oil firms.

Just look at Austria, very rich but obviously Russian run EU country. (latest prime minister got fired by Russians even though Russia cyberarmy helped him win the elections. They decided he was no longer as compliant, so they leaked data many years after elections, Russian scandals several years before that etc.). Raiffeisen bank in Austria, basically launders money for Russians over the last several decades, with no consequences to the chief officers.

Hungary is another good example.

Another Austrian neighbor, Croatia, not rich, and less influenced by Russians, had one of the biggest scandals ever when the biggest privately owned company in the Balkans (owned by a Croatian), that employs a massive amounts of Croatians, went bankrupt and could have been acquired by creditors (Sberbank and VTB Bank). I guess there was not enough Russian influence in politics and Croatian government put a new law immediately, so that this kind of takeover does not happen (Croatia nationalized the company).

Russia has quite a large reach into EU.

> Just look at Austria, very rich but obviously Russian run EU country.

This is just nonsense. Austrian government is not by any means run "by the Russians". Russia has been trying to enlarge it's sphere of influence in the west for a while now (which is nothing exceptional geopolitically speaking) and has few retired politicians working in the Russian private sector (Schröder [DE], Schüssel [AT], Fillion [FR], etc.). But to say that Austria and others are "obviously run by the Kremlin" is a blatant lie.

Greets from Austria

Yes indeed, 'cleancoder0' seems to have gained their understanding of middle Europe from a Tom Clancy novel, or whatever.

For many of us in Europe, including Austria, peace with Russia is considered a very good thing, and a lot of us want it, having lived through the enmities of hate and spite that was hoisted upon us during the Cold War.

Imagine if, indeed, the economic powerhouse of Europe+Russia were allowed to happen. If only certain entities weren't so committed to profiting from the balkanization of everything, hmm...

All power blocks have large influences into each other. That is basically the definition of being powerful in international diplomacy. You just notice it less (or caring about it less) when it's your own block influencing someone else.

Kurz got booted because of run of the mill power politics and because his clique was arrogant, careless, not very effective and made more than enough enemies. No outside influence needed. But its funny, russian propagandist standpoint is that he got ousted because he stood up to the EU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAhtC20nqjk

It is extremely amusing to consider that - from an American perspective - it takes "Russian Interference" for Austrian politics to be so screwed up.

Such naiveté begets the truth, which is that Americans falling for this trope really know nothing about Austrian political habits, whatsoever.

Kurz fell because Kurz was dumb and corrupt from the very beginning, and his party simply incompetent, and we are all glad to have seen him in the rear view mirror.

In fact, American agitprop'ers may not know this, but crediting Russia with Kurz' dismissal only makes us more willing to make deals with the Russkies.

> latest prime minister got fired by Russians even though Russia cyberarmy helped him win the elections.

Actual source? This "russian disinformation" and "russian election manipulation" has zero credibility if you read and listen to anything other than CNN at this point. Please send me actual proof before making claims like this.

I dont think CNN ever reported something like this.

This is outrageous agitprop/misinformation.

If "Russian influence" is on the table, then so is "CIA influence".

Or wait, lets talk about "General Dynamics Influence", and yes, with a capital-I.

And then we shall proceed to the discussion of which particular entity has the most actual blood on its hands, of innocents, as rapidly as possible.

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