Van der Bellen Salzburg Festival: Homeland, Climate Crisis | allfacts360
Federal President Van der Bellen accuses abuse of the term "homeland" at Salzburg Festival
Salzburg, July 26, 2026
Christophe Licoppe / European Commission / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 4.0
Summary
Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen delivered a widely noted speech at the opening of the Salzburg Festival. He warned against the political abuse of the term "Heimat" and called for greater European cohesion, climate protection, and civil courage.
Salzburg, July 26, 2026
Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen warned on Saturday in his opening speech at the Salzburg Festival against the political abuse of the term "Heimat" and at the same time called for greater European cohesion as well as decisive action on the climate crisis.
Homeland as a politically contested term
Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen opened the Salzburg Festival on Saturday and used his speech for a far-reaching appeal to the Republic. Before the audience in Salzburg he said: „Es ist schön, wieder hier zu sein", and explicitly thanked his hosts with the words „vielen Dank für die Einladung nach Salzburg". The opening speech was held under the programmatic title „Stolz auf unsere Heimat".
In substance, Van der Bellen first turned to the term „Heimat" and its current political charge. „Mit dem Begriff 'Heimat' wird viel gefährlicher Blödsinn getrieben", warned the Federal President. He added that this „so hehre und wichtige Begriff politisch missbraucht" werde and stressed: „Das gefällt mir nicht". Homeland is first and foremost „Glück in der Geburtslotterie".
Personal family history between Estonia and Tyrol
In his speech, Van der Bellen drew on historical references and recalled how the so-called völkisch ideology had driven people into the delusion „es gäbe so etwas wie einen 'Volkskörper' und man müsse diesen 'rein' halten". Against this background, he demanded that everyone who shares this homeland must „die Grundregeln einhalten".
At the same time, the Federal President built a personal bridge. He was born in Vienna in 1944, his parents – „sie eine Estin, er ein Russe" – had had „aus dem heutigen Estland emigrieren müssen, aus begründeter Angst vor den sowjetischen Behörden". „Bin ich 1944 in Wien geboren", Van der Bellen said verbatim. The family finally ended up in the Tyrolean Kaunertal, where he grew up. His own family history has for 300 years been a story of migration and „Immer-wieder-Heimkommen".
The Federal President shared a formative memory from his hometown. Kaunertal's mayor Pepi Raich had once said to him: „Bisch als Flichtlingskchind kcheïma, und iatz, iatz bisch uanr vo ins" – in standard German: You came as a refugee child, and now you are one of us. This sentence is „auch heute noch" moving for him, said Van der Bellen, and added: „Sie können sich kaum vorstellen, wie bewegend dieser Satz auch heute noch für mich ist".
Tribute to the keynote speaker Maria Kalesnikava
Shortly before the Federal President's speech, the audience had heard the address by the keynote speaker Maria Kalesnikava. Van der Bellen expressly praised her commitment: „Gerade haben wir die bewegende Rede von Maria Kalesnikava gehört". The Belarusian had „friedlich für mehr Demokratie in Belarus eingesetzt, in aller Öffentlichkeit". For this, the authorities there had locked her up „für Jahre in eine winzige Gefängniszelle". „Das nennt man Zivilcourage", Van der Bellen emphasized.
Kalesnikava ultimately became „frei, aber nicht für ein weiteres Leben in ihrer Heimat Belarus, sondern für ein Leben in Westeuropa", the Federal President explained. „Frei kam Maria Kalesnikava durch diplomatische Interventionen", Van der Bellen said verbatim. Her fate stands as an example of how vulnerable homeland can be.
Europe under pressure: tests from East and West
In the further course of his speech, Van der Bellen drew the arc to the state of Europe. „Denn Europa und der europäische Zusammenhalt werden gerade getestet. Angriffe kommen nicht gerade aus allen Himmelsrichtungen, aber jedenfalls aus Ost und West", he said. Europe must become more independent: „Wir müssen alles tun, um unabhängiger von der Willkür fremder Regierungen zu werden. Unabhängig in der Energieversorgung, unabhängig in der digitalen Welt. Souverän auch in unserer Verteidigungsfähigkeit".
„Ich bin stolz auf Österreich. Und ich denke, dass wir auch jeden Grund haben, stolz auf unser Europa zu sein, europapatriotisch zu sein", said Van der Bellen. In the EU, one has hit the jackpot, being on a free, democratic, and prosperous continent. The free, liberal democracy guarantees freedom of expression, equality, separation of powers, freedom of art, and human rights.
At the same time, the Federal President advocated for a willingness to compromise. „Das Innenleben jeder funktionierenden, freien, liberalen Demokratie besteht nolens volens auf Kompromissen", he said. Compromises must not „nicht gleich als Verrat an Gesinnungsdogmen gelten, sondern auch Zeichen von demokratischer Reife und politischer Verantwortung sein können".
Climate crisis and call to action
With a view to climate change, Van der Bellen found clear words. „Die schönste Heimat wird unbewohnbar ab 40 Grad Celsius", he warned. He called for an end to the fundamental debates „ob wir uns die Klimakrise einbilden oder nicht" and „ob Windräder schick aussehen oder nicht". Homeland can „nur für einen da sein, 'wenn wir für sie da sind'".
Van der Bellen pointed to his country's history. „In diesem Geist wurde unsere Heimat Österreich nach 1945 errichtet", he said with a view to the spirit of the Lagerstraße, that is, the cooperation of the political camps after the Second World War. In view of the threats posed by hate and violence, he appealed: „Wenn wir möchten, dass Hass, Mord und Vernichtung nie wieder geschehen in Europa, dann müssen wir zusammenarbeiten".
Closing appeal: „Packen wir's an"
With a clear call to action, the Federal President concluded his speech. He called out to the festival visitors: „Gehen wir nach vorn. Packen wir's an. Für unsere Heimat." In doing so, he linked personal biography, European political ambition, and a cultural-political commitment to Salzburg.
The opening of the Salzburg Festival is considered every year one of the most important cultural-political speeches of the year in Austria. The keynote speaker Maria Kalesnikava, who was connected via video or live link, stands with her biography for the vulnerability of democratic movements in Europe. Van der Bellen used the setting to bundle once more the programmatic lines of his presidential office – European patriotism, climate protection, and the defense of liberal democracy.
Questions & Answers
Who is Maria Kalesnikava and why is she being honored at the Festival opening?
Maria Kalesnikava is the Belarusian activist who gave the keynote address at the Salzburg Festival this year. According to Van der Bellen, she had committed herself peacefully and publicly to more democracy in Belarus and was imprisoned for years as a result; she was freed through diplomatic interventions.
What did Van der Bellen criticize about the term „Heimat"?
The Federal President warned that „mit dem Begriff 'Heimat' viel gefährlicher Blödsinn getrieben" werde. He recalled the völkisch ideology and emphasized that homeland is first and foremost „Glück in der Geburtslotterie" and can only endure „wenn wir für sie da sind".
What political demands did Van der Bellen make in his speech?
Van der Bellen called for greater European independence in energy, digital infrastructure, and defense, more willingness to compromise in democracy, and decisive action on the climate crisis. The speech concluded with the appeal: „Gehen wir nach vorn. Packen wir's an. Für unsere Heimat."
