More than two years after Qatargate, a new scandal involving the European Parliament has come to light, as the Chinese telecommunications company Huawei is alleged to have bribed MEPs to secure greater access to the EU market.
The Greek investigative journalism team Reporters United,along with the Belgian newspaper Le Soir, the Dutch investigative platform Follow the Money, and the Belgian magazine Knack, revealed the “HuaweiGate” scandal yesterday.
Following a two-year investigation—codenamed “Opération Génération”—into individuals acting on behalf of Huawei (lobbyists), Belgian police conducted raids at 21 locations, primarily in Belgium and Portugal. Several individuals were arrested on charges related to bribery of MEPs, money laundering, and forgery.
The Qatargate scandal concerned the alleged corruption of European Parliament members on behalf of the Qatari government.
Their identities have not yet been disclosed. However, the arrests do not currently involve any MEPs, though prosecutors may request the lifting of parliamentary immunity for several members in the near future.
Expensive football tickets, luxury gifts, and high-end trips to China were among the benefits that lobbyists allegedly provided on behalf of the company since 2021 to MEPs and their former and current assistants in exchange for their support of the Chinese tech giant.
According to sources within Belgian authorities, illegal and undeclared payments to one or more MEPs were routed through intermediaries, often disguised as expense coverage for conferences or meals.
