Aloof Prince Alois stands firm in Liechtenstein row

Prince Alois of Liechtenstein addresses a news conference in Vaduz February 19, 2008. When the prince of Liechtenstein spoke out in defense of his tiny country against powerful Germany, his people reveled in his uncharacteristic defiance.

VADUZ (Reuters) - When the prince of Liechtenstein spoke out in defense of his tiny country against powerful Germany, his people reveled in his uncharacteristic defiance.

Prince Alois, who once acknowledged he led a boring life, had been seen as conciliatory, distant or even timid. But his reaction to Germany's crackdown on secretive bank accounts in his principality has dramatically raised his profile.

The 39-year-old prince lacks many of the fiery traits that make his father Hans-Adam II a controversial figure, but his 35,000 subjects have warmed to him as he grapples with one of Liechtenstein's worst recent crises.

"People had criticized him for being too cautious. Now he has shown he can act differently, and people liked it," said Kornelia Pfeiffer, a journalist at the Liechtensteiner Volksblatt daily newspaper.

Prince Alois von und zu Liechtenstein appears now to have stepped out of his father's shadow, having lashed out at Germany last month in a dispute that has sparked worldwide controversy over tax havens.

He accused Germany of violating the law by purchasing information on suspected tax dodgers from an informant the principality views as a criminal.

"It is surely a crisis when one is shot at in this way by such a big country," the prince told a news conference in the capital Vaduz.

"Germany would be better off using its tax revenues to get its own tax system in order instead of paying millions for stolen data."

Alois looked aloof when reading his short speech and hurried out after the news conference.

On past record, Liechtenstein may not have expected him to act so boldly and defy criticism from around the world that his country is not doing enough to fight tax evasion by foreigners.

Alois had stayed out of the headlines since rising to power in 2004, after his father threatened to leave Liechtenstein if he lost a referendum to give him more political powers.

The tax haven, packed with banks catering to rich clients, backed Hans-Adam, who then handed over the day-to-day running of the country to his son.

The vote gave Liechtenstein's ruling family powers far beyond those of other blue-blooded European families, including the ability to dissolve Parliament and name judges.

CONSERVATIVE CATHOLIC

Apart from his position as acting head of the Alpine state, Alois has a further role to play in the tax haven row.

His billionaire family owns LGT bank, which has said the client data at the source of the dispute were probably stolen from it by a former employee years ago.

Banking accounts for a third of Liechtenstein's GDP and has helped make it one of the richest countries in the world.

Alois is a staunchly conservative Catholic who drew criticism for publicly stating his pro-life stance, but little else is known about him other than some bland facts: he likes playing tennis, skiing and hunting.

"It's all about leading a boring life," he told Switzerland's SonntagsBlick newspaper last year, explaining how he stayed out of the tabloid press.

Prince Alois was educated at Sandhurst, the elite British military academy, and served in the Coldstream Guards in Hong Kong and London. Liechtenstein itself has no army.

He oversees most of his country -- 160 square km in the Upper Rhine valley -- from a castle perched on the mountain behind Vaduz, which only became the family seat in 1938.

All inhabitants are invited to the castle grounds once a year to celebrate the national holiday on August 15.

Some find Alois an enigma compared to his father, who remains the country's sovereign.

"His father is more the type of a manager of the tough school. But Prince Alois is harder to characterise. He's more a mediator, a consultant type," said Mario Frick, who was the country's prime minister until 2001.

With the number of countries criticizing Liechtenstein for its secretive banking, that qualification may come in handy.

(Editing by Charles Dick)