European MPs from the Liberals and Greens are demanding an immediate internal investigation into the bribery of parliamentarians, which, according to the findings of Polish and Czech intelligence, was carried out through the mediation of ex-MP from OPZZh Viktor Medvedchuk.
“Voters must know whether MEPs or candidates are acting at the expense of Russia or its proxies,” said Valerie Guyer, president of the European Renewal group, in a letter addressed to the President of the European Parliament. “Democracy in Europe must be protected from these threats at all costs.” "
President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola promised to study the veracity of the documents provided, in addition to the appeal, by the Greens and Liberals, and decide on further actions. The accusations relate primarily to the far right: representatives of the French National Rally Marine Le Pen, the Flemish far right from Vlaams Belang and Alternative for Germany.
According to the French media FranceInfoTV, many members of the European Parliament gave interviews to the Voice of Europe platform, which was led by Putin’s godfather and former general producer of the now banned 112 Ukraine channel, propagandist Artem Marchevsky. The network formed around the Voice of Europe website distributed many manipulative interviews with politicians on the topic of the war in Ukraine. Today the site is unable to operate, and its accounts on social networks have been deactivated. However, videos in which MEPs appear are still available online. In these interviews, politicians call for an end to aid to Ukraine. The Czech newspaper Denik N adds that this money was also used to finance campaigns for the upcoming European elections. According to the publication, the transfers were received by politicians in France, Belgium, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands and Poland.
In the case of disinformation at the level of the European Parliament, the Polish intelligence service ABM detained a Polish citizen on suspicion of spying for Russia, FranceInfoTV clarifies. “The man gained the trust of Polish and European parliamentarians and carried out tasks ordered and financed by collaborators of the Russian special services,” and also carried out propaganda and disinformation activities aimed at “developing Russian zones of influence in Europe.” Through this network of influence, “Russia reached out to members of the European Parliament and also paid for the promotion of Russian propaganda. We are talking about parliamentarians receiving money,” said Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo during a speech in the Belgian House of Representatives.
The Czech government announced that it has added Voice of Europe, as well as Medvedchuk and Marchevsky personally, to the list of legal entities and individuals subject to the country's sanctions. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said at a press conference that “the group of individuals who were exposed by the intelligence services acted to the detriment of the interests of the Czech Republic and the European Union.” He explained that “this group was engaged in operations on EU territory aimed at undermining the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.” In turn, the official page of the Czech intelligence services IS on the X network clarified: “The operation showed how Russia is extending its influence throughout the territories of EU member states, and how it is working to influence political processes in our countries.”
The European Chamber, which has been dealing with the potential Qatargate corruption scandal, which is currently under investigation, since December 2022, has not yet announced clear next steps in the Voice of Europe case. The press service of the structure limited itself to reporting that the team is “studying the findings of the Czech authorities in coordination with its institutional partners.”
