REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, VIENNA -- Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern on Wednesday said while it is unfortunate that Britain has decided not to be a member state of EU, Brexit should be quick and free of friction.

As around 25,000 Austrian citizens live in Britain and Austrian companies are operating in the country, he stressed his country "will stand for the rights of the Austrians in the UK."

Kern stressed Britain's high debt to the EU is an important issue, saying Britain is still paying a debt of up to 60 billion euros (64.5 billion U.S. dollars), which will be "a tough struggle."

Meanwhile, Austrian Minister for Foreign Affairs Sebastian Kurz on Wednesday said Brexit must lead to a change of course within the European Union.

Kurz said the European Union has now "arrived at a turning point." "The EU must not simply become smaller and weaker," he argued.

He said concerning the "big issues" such as foreign, security, and defense politics, the EU must become stronger yet.

"Instead of increasing the contributions of the net contributors, consideration should be given to streamlining the EU," he said. 

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