A party that advocates an end to economic sanctions against Russia and has called for the “remigration of uninvited foreigners” could soon give Austria its first government headed by the far right since World War II,

Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen has asked the leader of the country's far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) to form a new ruling coalition in what could yield the first far-right-led government in Austria since World War Two.

The Freedom Party was tasked with trying to form the nation’s first far-right-led government since World War II, adding to the trend of anti-immigrant and populist parties gaining ground across Europe.