EU: Closed door meeting on EULEX corruption allegations

EU: Closed door meeting on EULEX corruption allegations

They spoke about the allegations made last week, and on several occasions since by EULEX prosecutor Maria Bamieh that some top EULEX officials received bribes, while others actively prevented these instances from being investigated.

In the meantime, influential MEP Eduard Kukan commented on the affair to join an initiative to launch an independent investigation, suggested by his colleagues Ulrike Lunacek and Doris Pack.

"All allegations of corruption must be taken seriously and thoroughly investigated by an independent investigator," wrote Kukan in a press statement and pointed out that the credibility of the EU rule of law mission in Kosovo was "severely shaken".

He, however, said that the investigation should be conducted with full respect for the procedures and the principle that everyone is innocent until proven guilty, and that internal control mechanisms must be "perfected."

Meanwhile, Bamieh has been suspended on suspicion that she leak classified information to the media. She accused Gentilini himself of being responsible for the cover-ups.

“I name him because, at the end of the day, EULEX is run by the EEAS. But they always try to pass the buck… they say: ‘It’s not us. It’s the (EU) Council’. The Council says: ‘It’s not us. It’s the EEAS’. Nobody takes responsibility. The EEAS should have some kind of transparency and accountability mechanism for its missions," the British prosecutor recently told EUObserver.

The European Commission said that the accusations will be investigated in regular procedure, and that a probe was ongoing.