Summary of the day
The president of the centrist Renew Europe, Valérie Hayer, has written to the president of the European parliament asking for an urgent investigation into reports that a Russian influence network had paid members of the European parliament.
Hayer also said that “we ask for full and immediate disclosure of names and numbers,” adding that “there’s no place for Putin’s agents in this House” and “we won’t let them undermine our democracies.”
The Greens have also called for an investigation into possible Russian interference attempts in Europe’s upcoming elections.
Bas Eickhout, a lead candidate for the Greens, said “we need to be sure that none of the candidates for these elections are being paid by Russians.”
Despite the controversy, a number of other political parties have yet to publicly comment on the allegations.
On Thursday, the Czech prime minister, Petr Fiala, said that “we have uncovered a pro-Russian network that was developing an operation to spread Russian influence and undermine security across Europe.”
A number of European countries have indicated that they have been involved in the investigation.
Maximilian Krah, a member of the European parliament representing the far-right Alternative for Germany, has stressed that he only gave two interviews to an entity now sanctioned by the Czech Republic, out of over 200, and stressed that there is no concrete accusation that he has been paid for any interview.
'Serious - but unfortunately not surprising', Danish candidate says as concerns grow about Russian interference
Sigrid Friis Frederiksen, the lead candidate for Denmark’s Radikale Venstre, has spoken about about the ongoing controversy:
Serious - but unfortunately not surprising - that Russian forces are trying to destabilize our European democracies. Even with the help of European elected representatives, it is said. Should be a huge focus for EP2024!
Alvorligt - men desværre ikke overraskende - at Russiske kræfter forsøger at destabilisere vores europæiske demokratier. Endda med hjælp fra europæiske folkevalgte, forlyder det. Bør være et kæmpe fokus til EP2024! https://t.co/owVVzNIZMo
— Sigrid Friis (@Sigridfriis) March 29, 2024
Far-right politician says there's no accusation that he was paid for interviews
Maximilian Krah, a member of the European parliament representing the far-right Alternative for Germany, has said that he has given over 200 interviews over the last two years, and that only two were for Voice of Europe, the entity at the centre of new allegations of a Russian influence network that was sanctioned this week by the Czech Republic.
There is no concrete accusation that I have been paid for even one of these >200 interviews, he said.
In den letzten zwei Jahren habe ich mehr als 200 Interviews gegeben, zwei davon an Voice of Europe. Es gibt keinerlei konkreten Vorwurf, dass ich für auch nur eines dieser >200 Interviews bezahlt worden wäre. Das zeigt, was von der aktuellen Kampagne zu halten ist: Nichts!
— Dr. Maximilian Krah MdEP (@KrahMax) March 29, 2024
Updated
Renew Europe demands 'immediate disclosure of names and numbers'
“We ask for full and immediate disclosure of names and numbers,” Renew Europe leader Valérie Hayer said this afternoon.
“President Metsola must conduct a thorough investigation right now. The Parliament has to hold fully accountable any MEP of this massive misconduct. This should include any criminal proceeding, so that integrity prevails over felony,” she said.
Hayer added:
There’s no place for Putin’s agents in this House. We won’t let them undermine our democracies. Europeans must know who they vote for. Their vote is their greatest power to kick such anti-democratic forces out of this House.
'The politicians who have received money from Russia should be severely punished', Greens say
The Greens have also called for an investigation into possible Russian interference attempts in Europe’s upcoming elections.
“This isn’t the first time it’s been proven that those far right politicians who loudly claim to champion the cause of their country, are secretly accepting money from foreign countries,” said European Green lead candidate Terry Reintke.
She added:
This undermines our European unity. This is how Putin is trying to get away with his war in Ukraine. This is not just a breach of trust; it’s a direct attack on the very fabric of our democracy. The politicians who have received money from Russia should be severely punished, both politically and legally.
Bas Eickhout, also a lead candidate for the Greens, said “there must be a swift and thorough European-wide investigation to get to the bottom of this. The European elections are in 10 weeks’ time.”
He added: “We need to be sure that none of the candidates for these elections are being paid by Russians.”
“We have uncovered a pro-Russian network that was developing an operation to spread Russian influence and undermine security across Europe,” the Czech prime minister, Petr Fiala, announced yesterday.
“Our work and efforts are leading to other countries in Europe investigating the activities of pro-Russian spy networks and gradually coming to more serious conclusions,” he added.
The Czech foreign ministry said that the country’s government had added one legal entity and two individuals to its sanctions list.
“This decision is in the security interest of the of the Czech Republic, as well as contributing to the protection of the democratic processes in relation to the forthcoming elections to the European Parliament,” the ministry said in a statement.
We have uncovered a pro-Russian network that was developing an operation to spread Russian influence and undermine security across Europe. Therefore we added two individuals and one legal entity to the sanctions list. Domestic authorities subsequently seized their assets.
— Petr Fiala (@P_Fiala) March 28, 2024
The…
'Clear attack': Renew Europe calls for investigation into possible Russian interference in EU elections
The president of Renew Europe, Valérie Hayer, has written to the president of the European parliament asking for an urgent investigation into reports that a Russian influence network had paid current or former members of the European parliament.
Renew is the centrist grouping in the European parliament which includes members such as France’s Renaissance and Germany’s FDP.
“I write to express the Renew Europe Group’s grave concerns about reports, confirmed by Polish, Czech and Belgian security services and by the Prime ministers of Belgium and the Czech Republic, that Members of this House and candidates in the forthcoming European elections have been paid by the Russia Government or its proxies to disseminate propaganda in the European parliament and beyond,” Hayer wrote in the letter, dated today.
“This is clear attack on our European way of life, our parliament and its democratic mandate by a foreign power,” she stressed.
Hayer added:
We urge you to launch an immediate and transparent investigation, in cooperation with national authorities, to uncover the scale of the influence operation within this house and allegations of potential corruption.
If sitting MEPs or candidates in the upcoming European elections have taken money from or been corrupted by the Russia Government or their proxies, they must be exposed.
The Renew Europe leader also said the group had put in a request for an urgent debate on the subject.
And she called for action regarding Voice of Europe, the entity that was sanctioned by the Czech Republic.
We urge you to take the necessary steps to remove any access that the Voice of Europe has to the European parliament’s premises and protect the democratic integrity of this house. European sanctions should accompany those adopted by the Czech Government.
Updated
Welcome to the blog
Good afternoon and welcome back to the Europe blog.
Today we will be looking at reactions and concerns after a number of European governments announced they had uncovered a Russian influence operation.
Send tips and comments to lili.bayer@theguardian.com
