Brussels has been shaken by corruption scandals for more than half a year, Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten writes. And despite high-profile arrests and reforms in the fight against bribery, the situation is only getting worse. All the actions of law enforcement agencies resemble “muscle play” rather than a real fight against criminals. Meanwhile, hitherto unknown scales of criminal conspiracy are constantly being uncovered, possibly involving even those who conduct the investigation itself, says the German publication.
One after another corruption scandals shake Brussels, undermining the trust of EU citizens in their leaders, Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten writes. Late last year, police detained Eva Kiley, vice president of the European Parliament, and five other suspects. She was accused of setting up a criminal group involved in money laundering and corruption. She reportedly received expensive gifts from Qatar, Morocco and Mauritania in exchange for political concessions, such as a free trade agreement or fishing rights.
But despite high-profile detentions and reforms to prevent bribery, the problem has only worsened, the German publication continued. And the recent searches at the home of Marie Arena, head of the European Parliament’s subcommittee on human rights, are testament to this. Belgian security services accused her of declaring trips to Qatar at the emirate’s expense too late. She is also suspected of receiving money in exchange for political favours. Law enforcers also believe she may have played a key role in a criminal gang involved in corruption.
At the same time, recently investigations within the framework of the so-called catargate had to be suspended, as it turned out that the Belgian judge Michel Klees, who headed it, could not claim to be an objective arbitrator. The fact is that his son is a business partner of Arena’s son, who have a joint business. At this point, it is difficult to assume at all what the real scale of this corruption scheme is, the publication notes. At the same time, all the suspects do not admit their guilt. Eva Kiley is going to return to the European Parliament soon. She is convinced that all this is a conspiracy against her. Arena also believes that soon all charges against her will be dropped.
In this regard, it seems that all these high-profile arrests and investigations are just some “muscle games” rather than a really effective fight against corruption, which threatens the geopolitical independence of the EU, the publication notes. Brussels is not sure that the measures taken will be enough to avoid similar cases in the future. In addition, the countries of the Near and Middle East continue to influence Europe. For example, Germany signed a deal with Qatar to supply gas, despite the fact that it is not environmentally friendly. From 2026 to 2041, the FRG will import two tonnes of the blue fuel from the emirate. If Germany and the EU were to develop shale gas production at home, or work with “clean suppliers” such as Norway, they would be on the right side morally and environmentally.
“But there is a danger that they – and especially a federal republic – would drag Europe into a new dependence on suspicious states,” concludes Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten.
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