But the youthful leader also acknowledged a hard Brexit would be a “catastrophe” for everybody involved.
Mr Kurz, 32, made his remarks prior to heading to Brussels for the European Council summit attended by leaders from all of the bloc’s 28 member states, including British Prime Minister Theresa May.
Pressed on whether his country was ready for a no-deal situation, he said: “You have to be prepared, but you do not have to go on about it.”
However, he also characterised the prospect as a “catastrophe”.
Austrian European Minister Gernot Blümel added: “The negotiation process is one of the great successes.
“The unity of the EU, which is missing regarding many issues – in terms of Brexit we are united!”
Speaking at the summit today, Mr Kurz said: “I do not expect a big breakthrough tonight. But I do hope that in the next weeks and months we can get a deal.
“Today Theresa May will lay out her position, and I hope that we see a small step in the right direction, that would be a success.
“The ball is in Britain’s court. We have made clear what we envision.”
“There is no reason to dramatise this. It is always the case in negotiations that they are tense and difficult and challenging at the end. That doesn’t mean they will fail.
“No one wants these negotiations to fail, neither the EU nor Theresa May want a hard Brexit.”
Mr Kurz’s comments come in the wake of confirmation that both France and Germany are taking steps to cope with the impact of Britain leaving the EU without a withdrawal agreement.
Speaking in Berlin yesterday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told MPs her Government had started making “suitable preparations”, adding: “It is only fitting as a responsible and forward-thinking government leadership that we prepare for every scenario.”
Meanwhile France has published a draft bill which would allow the government to introduce new legal measures to avoid or mitigate the consequences of a hard Brexit by emergency decree rather than parliamentary vote.
Such consequences would include Britons needing visas to visit France and UK nationals living in France being left in an “irregular” situation.
Other countries are making similar preparations.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said last month his country was “better prepared” than Britain for a hard Brexit, and is hiring at least 750 more customs agents for Rotterdam, Europe’s largest port.
Meanwhile, neighbouring Belgium is adding 141 staff to its 3,400-strong customs force.
The country, which is where the EU Parliament is based, is also investing in drones and underwater scanners to monitor coastlines and the North Sea.
The Polish Government is preparing to offer consular support to roughly one million citizens living in the UK who would be in legal limbo should negotiations fail.
(Additional reporting by Monika Pallenberg)