EU Kosovo mission (EULEX)
Investigation on corruption allegations must be thorough, timely and transparent
The European Parliament's foreign affairs committee yesterday met with officials from the EU's mission in Kosovo (EULEX) on recent allegations of corruption and maladministration with the mission. Commenting on the situation, Green MEP and EP vice-president Ulrike Lunacek, who is the European Parliament's draftsperson on Kosovo, said:
"There must be full transparency regarding the allegations of corruption with EULEX and the necessary investigations. The Greens pushed for yesterday's committee meeting with EULEX officials to this end but the outcome was far from satisfactory. The failure to investigate these worrying allegations in an open and swift manner will inevitably create the impression of a cover up. To this end, the EP has sent a number of questions to EU foreign policy high representative Mogherini (1) and, after receiving answers, we will decide whether we will set up a parliamentary investigative committee.
"I have reiterated my request to have an independent external actor deal with the investigation without delay and it is welcome that high representative Mogherini has today picked up on this proposal. It is indispensable that the EU acts decisively on any findings of irregularities and corruption because the reputation of the most important EU foreign policy mission, and the credibility of the EU itself, is at stake. Zero tolerance of corruption is a must."
(1) Click to access the letter
