ABS News May 2026

Editorial: No excuse for talking about Churchill again
Presidential Message: Members Recruit Members
Remembering April
May Events
Vice President's Corner: The EU’s The Thing for the Western Balkan Six
ABS on Social Media
The Last Page

Dear Members and Friends of the ABS,

no excuse for talking about Churchill again!

86 years ago - in May 1940 - Mr. Churchill had a busy time! 1 September 1939 the Second World War had started with the German attack on Poland and on 10 May 1940 the "Phoney War" - the "passive" period on the German/French front line - ended with "Fall Gelb", the German attack on Belgium and The Netherlands.

And on the very same day Winston Churchill was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by King George VI and three days later on 13 May 1940 was giving the first of his famous speeches as Prime Minister in which he declared "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat".

This first of his three famous speeches of 1940 - more about them maybe next month? - was immortalised by the American jazz-rock band "Blood, Sweat & Tears" who derived their name from Churchill's speech, and in September 2016 by the Bank of England which issued a new 5-pound note with a portrait of Churchill and the famous phrase beneath the portrait.

See you all at the next ABS event which will offer you much more than "Blood, toil, tears and sweat"

Wolfgang M. Buchta
ABS Secretary General

PRESIDENTIAL MESSAGE

Members Recruit Members

We are still under the strong impression of our spectacular UK trip to Liverpool from 17 to 20 April. The report and photos have already been shared. This thoroughly successful journey reached its planned highlight with our visit to the Bentley headquarters. The factory tour impressed with British craftsmanship, precision, and creative innovation. Special thanks go to Mag. Antonia Stubenberg, Director of Bentley Vienna, who made this visit possible in the first place.

As previously announced, we are now introducing two further initiatives designed to support our members in recruiting new members.

Initiative 3: Events without strict capacity limits will now be opened to prospective members on a “bring-a-friend” basis. This allows family members, friends and acquaintances to attend and get to know us. The first events of this kind will be our annual Heurigen evening at Weingut Wolff on 3 July and this year’s Prince George Birthday Party on 22 July.

Initiative 4: Going forward, we will increasingly offer events at which non-members may participate by covering our costs. This approach has already proven successful at our polo and carriage events at Schloss Ebreichsdorf, which will take place again on 27 June.

We very much look forward to seeing you again soon at our upcoming events (3 in May, 5 in June, and 2 in July).

Yours sincerely,

Kurt Tiroch

April 2026 brought us another two splendid events:

Event No. 1: Wie sicher ist Österreich?

Mag. Omar Haijawi-Pirchner former DSN director gave us a first-hand lecture on security, intelligence services and espionage.

Click here for the event report and photos

Event No. 2: Liverpool is calling

ABS members did another trip to Britain where there is much to be seen - Range Rover and Bentley, Beatles and Everton vs. Liverpool and plenty of drinks at the local pubs.

Click here for the event report and photos:

ABS Action in May

"May is the time when everything awakens and springs into action" says an old proverb and also the ABS "springs into action" - three events in May!

4 May – 6:00 p.m.

"Göttliches Spiel – Evolutionstheologie": Univ.-Prof. em. Dr. Wolfgang Schreiner will present his new book and give us a lecture on this fascinating topic.

Café Ministerium, Georg Coch-Platz 4

Invitation already sent

20 May

Visit to Amalthea Verlag where Elisabeth Bischof will present her new book on "our" King Charles

Invitation and details to follow

30 May

Our traditional British Car Excursion - British Cars Only! - will take us to "Böhm Sportautos" at Wiener Neustadt and further on to collector extraordinaire Wolfgang Alber and his "British Classic Car Collection" in the lovely Piesting Valley.

Invitation and details to follow

VICE PRESIDENT'S CORNER

The EU’s The Thing for the Western Balkan Six

The European Union should continue to enlarge but with an eye on shifts both in US policies and the world’s geoeconomics

The important issue facing the EU is the stance towards the Western Balkans in this new era of instability and misalignment between the Euro-Atlantic partners.

The first step should be to encourage the governments of Montenegro and Albania to complete negotiations by the end of 2026 and 2027, respectively with the full assistance of the EU Commission. Bringing Montenegro and Albania into the EU would have a tremendous effect not only on their neighbors but also on all others who are currently negotiating. Moreover, it will influence public opinion throughout the Western Balkans. The message is hugely encouraging accession is possible, the enlargement policy is alive! This will only strengthen the voice of the citizens of other negotiating countries who support accession to the EU, and who usually vote for the most democratic parties domestically.

SCHENGEN AREA FIRST

Another consideration: bring the Western Balks Six into the Schengen area before joining the EU. The European Commission could prepare a road map for this. All Western Balkan countries now negotiating are surrounded by EU members. This should help them achieve whatever is needed to become part of the Schengen area as soon as possible, and will be welcomed by citizens and entrepreneurs, as it will strengthen their migration policies labour policies, transport systems, tourism and their overall security.

by former Ambassador Alexander Christiani

ABS Vice President

ABS on Social Media

Social media is a valuable tool for non-profit organizations like our Austrian British Society to increase visibility, communicate effectively, and build strong relationships with supporters. Platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram each offer unique benefits for engaging audiences. The ABS is present on all these platforms and provides great content on each of these

Meet the Social Media Team:

Michael Raschovsky - Facebook

Facebook helps build communities, share updates, and promote events, while its fundraising tools make it easy to convert engagement into support.

Isabella Gründler - LinkedIn

LinkedIn is ideal for professional networking, allowing non-profits to connect with partners, donors, and volunteers while building credibility through shared insights.

Ekaterina Yaneva - Instagram

Instagram excels in visual storytelling, enabling organizations to showcase their impact through photos and videos and connect with younger audiences.

We would encourage you, our members, to take advantage of our social media presence and help to increase the reach of our postings by sharing them within your network and also by actively providing feedback like clicking the thumbs up button!