He is also politically astute. He has manoeuvred his way into the coalition politics of Vienna and yet stays away from the daily fray of national politics. This disarms critics and opponents, who are relieved that the worst has been avoided and comfort themselves with the thought that their pressures are working. The greatest factor here is the end of the Cold War. With the Soviet threat absent, extreme right-wing forces, which would not have been tolerated in the past because they might endanger internal stability and therefore the fight against global communism, are now freer to operate.
Islamic fundamentalism is another factor.
The war in the former Yugoslavia has confirmed Europe's image of the Balkans as the Third World at its own doorstep. Feelings of pity and kinship for the former Eastern Europeans have been replaced by fear and contempt fear that hordes of easterners will migrate westward, and contempt for eastern backwardness. Right-wing extremism and the rise of the BJP in India can be traced to similar factors. Secondly, economic deprivation has played a role here too. The lack of employment opportunities for young men in particular has been a factor.