VIENNA, June 4. /TASS/. A "new totalitarianism" has emerged in Europe, former Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl said at the presentation of the German-language edition of her book titled Requiem for Europe.

The event took place at the Russian Embassy in Vienna on June 2, with the expert participating via video link-up.

"I can see today – and I understand that these are harsh words – that there is a ‘new totalitarianism,’ where shades of grey are no longer accepted. There is only either-or, and no both-and approach. Dialogue is stalled not only on the Russia issue but also on a number of other matters," the ex-top diplomat pointed out.

"Those who still call for dialogue are facing what is called 'canceled,' as they are rejected and left out. They are in fact treated as outlaws under conditions similar to papal rule. Such people are pushed aside and deprived of their rights," Kneissl added.

"In her book on totalitarianism, Hannah Arendt (a German-American philosopher and journalist, 1906-1975 - TASS) clearly showed the drama of what happens when people become redundant. In the 1930s, she had to emigrate to the United States. <...> I would even go as far as to say that today, Hannah Arendt would not have been able to publish her works in Germany or Austria, because she called things by their name too openly when it came to totalitarianism," the expert concluded.