Eva Kaili loses her position as Vice President of the European Parliament over serious corruption allegations. On Tuesday, MEPs in Strasbourg voted with just one vote against for the immediate removal of the politician from Greece, who is currently in custody. The social democrat and former TV presenter is one of six suspects that the Belgian authorities have arrested since Friday in the corruption scandal.
Four of them were taken into custody on Sunday, including Kaili, her boyfriend and former MEP Antonio Panzeri, according to media information. According to the public prosecutor’s office, they must appear before a council chamber on Wednesday, which must decide whether the arrest will be maintained and how to proceed.
The four suspects are suspected of involvement in a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption. It is said that the Gulf Emirate of Qatar, which is currently hosting the World Cup, has tried to influence political decisions in the European Parliament with massive financial and material donations.
First of all, there is a need for “transparency and clarification”
Minister of Europe Karoline Edtstadler (ÖVP) was “appalled” by the allegations of corruption. It is “really intolerable that an institution is being dragged through the mud here, especially at a time when democracy is something very important,” Edtstadler stressed in Brussels on Tuesday. Asked about the implications for relations between Austria and Qatar given the latest cooperation in the energy sector, the minister for Europe explained: “First we need ‘transparency and clarification’, then ‘we can take further steps'”.
Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) made a similar statement. “There must be clarity quickly, everything on the table and then provided with the appropriate consequences,” she said in Brussels on Tuesday. The central goal should be the expansion of renewables to reduce dependency, Gewessler explained regarding relations with Qatar. It is now the case that the countries that supply natural gas, among other things, are “average Western democracies, that is the reality of the raw material supply in Europe”.
Source: Krone
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