Spotlight: Austrian voters make wise choice against isolationism

Europeans hailed the narrow victory of Austria's Green Party-backed candidate Alexander Van der Bellen in Sunday's presidential runoff, in hopes of dealing a blow to euro-skepticism in other parts of Europe.

Van der Bellen said that his victory sent a "message to the capitals of the European Union that one can win elections with high European positions."

He noted that his triumph over the far-right anti-EU candidate Norbert Hofera showed that votes can be won by candidates who are strongly pro-EU.

Austria's European neighbors France, Germany and Netherlands would all host general elections. The outcome of Austria's presidential election could provide hope for moderates amid the growth of isolationism and populism, mostly manifested by Brexit in a June referendum and Donald Trump's election as U.S. president across the Atlantic.

The Kurier newspaper commented that the pro-Europe victory in Austria has effectively broken the spell of populism although hit does not mean the end of populism.

Since 2008, Europe has been plagued by a series of setbacks and crises. The financial troubles and particularly the influx of refugees since 2015 had sparked uneasiness and fear among the Europeans, giving room to the spread of populism and isolationism and hindering integration.

But observers have cautioned that isolationism would not bring about prosperity.

Austria ranks the seventh in a total of 136 countries reviewed in a report on the openness of free trade, released on Nov. 30 by the World Economic Forum.

Austria's economy depends heavily on trade, with exports contributing to 53 percent of its total economic growth, echoed Fritz Breuss, a trade specialist with the Austrian Institute of Economic Research.

Former Austrian Finance Minister Ferdinand Lacina warned that anti-globalization would only make things worse, as the cancellation of free trade and the levy of the punitive tariffs would sharply enhance the product prices, thus making them unaffordable for the low-income consumers.

Breuss admitted that globalization has negative effects. The eastward expansion of the European Union has witnessed the inflow of cheap laborers from Eastern European countries into Austria, mounting pressure on the income levels of the locals, especially those with poor education.

To address the issue, Breuss pointed out, the government should adopt better compensation policies. Endi