A far-right leader could soon take the helm in EU member country Austria. Here's why it matters

Austria is set to become the latest European Union country to tilt further to the right politically. With the country facing an intractable recession and a budget crunch, President Alexander Van der Bellen's has turned to the far-right Freedom Party and its provocative leader Herbert Kickl to form a new government after the governing conservatives failed to pull together a new ruling coalition. Here's a look at the background and geopolitical stakes for change in a country that has long been militarily neutral but appears set to tilt closer to Russia under its first far-right-led government since World War II.