Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz speaks to the media in Vienna on May 19, 2019 | Michael Gruber/Getty Images Austria’s Kurz says far-right Freedom Party ‘destroyed’ itself Austrian leader says former vice chancellor could face criminal prosecution over Russia scandal.

Austria’s disgraced ex-Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache could face criminal prosecution in connection with statements he made in a secretly taped video that led to his resignation, according to Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.

“There could be criminal liability,” Kurz told the German daily Bild in an interview published Sunday. “The investigations will determine what happens next.”

Kurz withdrew from the governing coalition with Strache's far-right Freedom Party in the wake of the video’s release, triggering new elections in September.

In the video, Strache discusses how his conversation partner — a woman he believes to be the wealthy niece of a Russian oligarch — could secretly funnel money to his campaign. The footage was recorded in 2017, a few months before the election that vaulted Strache into power alongside Kurz’s People’s Party.

He tells the woman she should set up a nonprofit organization as a conduit for the funds, a strategy he says other wealthy donors have used to help his party.

In the interview, Kurz said he had no choice but to end the coalition, given the gravity of Strache’s comments. In the video, Strache also offered to help the woman score lucrative public contracts in exchange for financial support and other favors.

The video appears to have been part of an elaborate sting by unknown individuals, but no deals followed. Nonetheless, Strache’s apparent eagerness to circumvent the law opens the door for prosecutors to explore his other dealings, in particular the possibility that he and his party received secret donations.

Kurz defended his decision to enter into a coalition with the Freedom Party in the first place, despite their long track record as a volatile, racist force. He said that during the 17 months the government lasted, it had managed to balance the budget and push through important reforms, including a tax overhaul.

“In order to pursue our agenda and bring about change, I had to be willing to endure quite a lot,” he said, a reference to a string of provocations by officials in the far-right party, including attacks on the media and the use of extremist rhetoric.

Kurz said he had no doubt that the scandal would damage Austria’s reputation abroad. But he suggested the more lasting impact would be elsewhere.

“The Freedom Party has destroyed itself,” he said.