The European Union warned Austria Monday it would isolate a Vienna government that included Joerg Haider_s Freedom Party in an unprecedented step which reflects the depth of concern about the far-right leader.

In a statement issued by EU president Portugal, Austria_s allies said they would freeze all bilateral political contacts, limit the role of Vienna_s ambassadors in their capitals and not back any Austrian candidates for international organizations. Haider is best known for making remarks which appeared to play down the crimes of the Nazis. A fairly forthright apology he made in November has failed to quell international protest. The outcry at the prospect of his party entering a coalition with the conservative People_s Party grew louder over the weekend after the populist leader heaped angry abuse on French President Jacques Chirac and the Belgian government. People_s Party leader Wolfgang Schuessel, foreign minister for the last five years, was visibly shaken by the EU threat. The new government should be judged on its policies, he said. He said the new government program, expected to be ready by Wednesday, would be preceded by a preamble explicitly spelling out Austria_s commitment to European integration and acknowledging its Nazi past.