Belgium. Huawei and corruption in the EU. How did lobbying affect Europe’s policy?
Agents also eavesdropped other talks involving one of Huawei’s leading lobbyists, including his car. Supervision operations, confirmed by three people with knowledge about the investigation, were part of the broadly investigating investigation of corruption, which was first disclosed in March. They contributed to the decision of the Belgian prosecutor to submit an application to repeal the immunity of the group of deputies to the European Parliament so that the investigation could be carried out against them.
These amazing revelations are the latest chapter of the saga, which combines concerns about the impact of China on the European policy with the susceptibility of EU legislators on bribery and suspicious lobbying practices, which do not decrease even after a series of similar scandals.
Huawei purchased a private lodge at the Constant Vanden Stock stadium, belonging to Anderlecht, in southwestern Brussels, for the 2024/25 season-in which the club took such European giants as Fenerbahçe, Porto and Real Sociedad-for about 50,000 euro. This information was provided by the spokesman for RSC Anderlecht.
According to people who had knowledge about the investigation, Belgian authorities checked whether to rent a lodge to get closer to MEPs was part of a wider plan used by Huawei lobbyists to strengthen the company’s position in the EU decision -making process.
At the time of the original accusations, Belgian prosecutors found that they were investigating potential bribery, including legislators receiving remuneration for political positions, excessive gifts, paid travel and invitations to events. The examined incidents cover the period from 2021 to the end of 2024.
According to the provisions of talks with the participation of the lobbyist Huawei, the reason why the company rented a lodge was to establish preliminary contact with politicians and an attempt to bribe them, says one of the people familiar with the investigation.
The lobbyist managed to bring freshly selected MEPs to the lodge, inviting their assistants first. Then the invitations were sent to legislators from a wide spectrum of political groups, as well as former MEPs and other EU officials, told Politico to two people close to investigations.
The fourth person with close contacts with the investigation said that the supervision methods used by Belgian authorities are « quite common in this type of investigation. »
According to the Belgian prosecutor, the police conducted raids in March to over 20 locations in Belgium and Portugal as part of an investigation into alleged illegal payments made by Huawei in order to obtain an open letter signed by eight European legislators supporting the company’s interests.
Five people were accused as part of the investigation, the prosecutors transferred on March 18. In April, they said that eight people were accused. Three employees of Huawei and the managing director from the Brussels Organizer of the Conference Forum Europe were represented in court in April.
The Anderlecht Football Club « does not intend to renew » the contract with Huawei after its completion at the end of the season, said the club spokesman, adding that « no official application was received from the Belgian authorities » to get involved in observing the box or cooperation in the investigation.
Two MEPs, whose immunity was demanded by the Belgian authorities, Maltese socialist Daniel Attard and the Bulgarian liberal Nikola Minczew, admitted that they were at Anderlecht’s matches and in their statements stated that they did not know that they were invited by Huawei.
« I was not informed that the invitation came from any company or that it concerned the corporate lodge, » said Attard, who in September 2024 participated in Anderlecht’s match with the Hungarian club Ferencváros.
« My assistant simply informed me that his friend had tickets for the match and asked if I would be interested in accompanying him and his son, » he said.
Minczew said that his assistant told him that « a friend and neighbor » invited him to a match between Anderlecht and Bulgarian Ludogorce in October 2024.
On Wednesday, the Belgian authorities asked the parliament to repeal the immunity of two other deputies to the European Parliament, center -right Italian Fulvio Martusciello and Salvatore de Meo. The fifth application regarding the center -right Italian MP to the European Parliament Giusi Princi was withdrawn.
None of the PE deputies have been accused and everyone deny the crime. The application to repeal the MP’s immunity to the EP does not mean that he broke any right. According to the Belgian legal system, this is a necessary step so that the police can call them for interrogation and conduct a full investigation.
The border between lobbying and corruption is very thin. PE deputies can take gifts, but if they are worth more than 150 euros, they must report them.
« Despite an unlucky set of parliamentary principles, there is simply no reasonable reason that would explain why PE deputies should receive gifts from lobbyists, » said Nick Aïossa, director of Transparency International EU, a non -governmental organization.
The Belgian prosecutor and Huawei did not answer Politico’s requests for a comment.
The article was based on the translation of the text from Politico. Its author is Max Grier
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