Diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Austria started 160 years after
the establishment of the Ottoman Empire. Until the end of the Middle Ages,
mutual ambassadors were sent for reasons such as declaration of war, peace
treaty, territorial disputes, alliances, enthronement, weddings and
funerals.
Despite the fact that Austria had a permanent diplomatic representation in
Istanbul since the middle of the 16th century, the representation of the
Ottoman Empire in Austria was limited to “ad hoc” ambassadors until the end
of the 1700s. The first Permanent Ambassador İbrahim Afif Efendi arrived in
Vienna in 1798.
The first (1529) and second (1683) siege of Vienna by the Ottoman Empire
appear to have a long-standing effect on relations. Relations with mutual
struggle turned into alliance in the First World War. Ottoman and Austrian
soldiers fought alongside on the Galician front in the First World War. The
alliance relationship was reinforced with the "Friendship Agreement" signed
in 1924 between Türkiye and Austria.
Turkish community in Austria constitutes one of the most important elements
in Turkish-Austrian relations. The Turkish community in Austria is composed
of nearly 300.000 people.
Chancellor Nehammer paid an official visit to Türkiye on 10 October 2023.
This visit constituted the first visit of Austria to Türkiye on a
Chancellor level after 22 years. Within the scope of the visit, Chancellor
Nehammer had a meeting with President Erdoğan as well as Prof. Dr. Numan
Kurtulmuş, Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly and attended the
Türkiye-Austria Business Council Round Table Meeting.
Foreign Minister Schallenberg and Interior Minister Gerhard Karner visited
Türkiye on 3-4 July 2022. Former Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu paid a visit
to Austria on 14 April 2023 and held bilateral meetings.
Austrian Foreign Minister Schallenberg paid a visit to Türkiye on 13-14 May
2024 and had talks with his counterpart Minister Fidan as well as with Mr.
Ali Yerlikaya, Minister of Interior.
There have been numerous meetings between high level authorities of two
countries in the recent period, especially at the margins of international
meetings and conferences.