Vienna: In comments yesterday, Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern said he will not bow to “intimidation” from Turkey after receiving online death threats as tensions rise between the EU and Ankara.

“We should not allow ourselves to be intimidated in any way. Threats, even death threats, from the right wing and the radical part of the Turkish community have become a reality for me,” Kern said. “Appeasement has to stop. Of course, there is the right to demonstrate here, but the radical elements within the Turkish community must learn to respect our way of life,” he said. Relations have deteriorated between Turkey and Europe since a major crackdown by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan following a failed coup on July 15, with tensions particularly high with Germany and Austria, both of which have large ethnic Turkish communities.