The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Monday defended her proposal for a common ethical standard covering all European institutions, following Qatar’s alleged bribery of one of the Vice-Presidents of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili, as part of a corrupt scheme to promote the Gulf country’s interests in European politics.
«The allegations against the vice president are of great concern. They are very serious and affect citizens’ trust in the institutions. This trust needs high standards of independence and integrity,» the head of the European executive acknowledged when asked about Kaili’s case at a press conference in Brussels on energy issues.
In this regard, she called for European institutions to follow the «highest standards», as it is «critical» not only to have strong rules but also to ensure that they are the same that cover all European institutions and that there are no «exceptions».
Von der Leyen said that since March she has been calling for the creation of an ethics body for all European institutions, something that Vice President for Securities Vera Jourova is negotiating with the Council and the European Parliament. «It is a question of transparency, clear rules and that all European institutions follow the same rules,» she has defended.
On whether the European Commission is analyzing the infiltration of the plot in the institution itself, the German conservative has defended the transparency record of meetings of members of the European Executive and said that it is analyzing it, ensuring that it will act accordingly if there is any development that affects the institution.
Von der Leyen has avoided entering into a political assessment of the scandal affecting the Vice President of the European Parliament, nor has she wanted to talk about the Vice President of the Commission Margaritis Schinas, who recently traveled to Qatar for the opening of the World Cup and defended the progress in labor rights experienced in the Gulf country.
In any case, he wanted to defend cooperation with Qatar at the global level for issues such as the climate issue, as well as regional issues for stability in the area and at the bilateral level to diversify energy supply sources, stating that at the same time the EU raises its voice in situations that pose «problems» through dialogue focused on human rights. «There is a wide range of levels of work being done,» he stressed.
