Auch der frühere ÖVP-Bundeskanzler Wolfgang Schüssel wurde ausgezeichnet. | Heute.at

Auch der frühere ÖVP-Bundeskanzler Wolfgang Schüssel wurde ausgezeichnet.

APA-Images / AFP / SEBASTIEN BOZON

Former Federal Chancellor of Austria Wolfgang Schussel gestures as he addresses the audience after receiving the European Order of Merit during a ceremony to honour individuals who have made significant contributions to the European unity, democracy or to the promotion and defence of European values at the European Parliament's hemicycle in Strasbourg, eastern France on May 19, 2026. The European Parliament established the first European distinction of its kind — the European Order of Merit — in 2025 to mark the 75th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, with the inaugural ceremony taking place in 2026. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / POOL / AFP)