The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has reportedly conducted raids at the College of Europe in Bruges and the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels as part of an inquiry into possible fraud related to EU-funded training for junior diplomats.
The revelations, widely reported by the European media earlier this week, also cite Federica Mogherini, Rector of the College of Europe. The Italian national is a former EU foreign policy chief.
On Wednesday, Mrs Mogherini issued a statement which reads: “Regarding the procedure to establish the European Union Diplomatic Academy, yesterday I clarified my position with the investigators acting on behalf of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
“In its long tradition, the College has always applied and will continue to apply the highest standards of integrity and fairness.
“For three years now, the European Union Diplomatic Academy has been offering the highest quality of teaching and practice to its participants.I have full confidence in the justice system, and I trust that the correctness of the College’s actions will be ascertained.I will obviously continue to offer my full collaboration to the authorities,” the statement ended.
Meanwhile, The Left group in the EU Parliament has now called for “immediate action” on what it calls “anti-corruption measures for EU officials.”
Co-Chair of The Left Manon Aubry (La France Insoumise, France) said “The reports of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office’s investigation into the embezzlement of funds are deeply disturbing.”
She said, “However, given how lax we know the EU’s oversight of top figures has been in the past, perhaps it is not surprising.”
The deputy said, “The credibility of our institutions is at stake. As we speak, negotiations over an anti-corruption directive are underway following the scandals of Qatargate, Huawei and the Uber Files.
“We urgently need an ethics body with more teeth to stop the rot of corruption at its source, rather than waiting for the next scandal to break,” said the MEP.
The Left says it will demand a debate at the next plenary session in Strasbourg and an inquiry committee into what it calls “continued corruption allegations at the highest level of European institutions.”
