European Commission: We ran checks, not an investigation, into former Commissioner Avramopoulos

Commission draws a line between checks and investigation

Spokesperson Balazs Ujvari, at the daily press briefing in Brussels, said the Commission had never used the term “internal investigation” and that the process at the end of 2022 was strictly a set of internal checks. “We did carry out certain internal checks, but not an internal investigation. There is a difference between the two,” he said. The checks were meant to verify that Avramopoulos had respected the conditions imposed when the College of Commissioners approved his role with the NGO Fight Impunity in February 2021, after consulting the Independent Ethics Committee.

It was about a post-mandate activity approved by the College in February 2021, with certain restrictions. At the end of 2022 we carried out internal checks to see whether the former Commissioner had respected all the relevant provisions. That was internal checks, not an investigation.

Spokesperson Paola Pinho added that the Commission’s role was limited to ensuring compliance with its own decision. Examining the activities of the NGO itself, or the allegations of wrongdoing now pursued by Belgian authorities, is “a completely different issue” and not within the Commission’s competence.

Arrest warrant and serious charges

A Belgian arrest warrant was issued on Monday against Dimitris Avramopoulos, who served as EU Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship. He faces charges of participation in a criminal organization, repeated bribery of a public official, and money laundering. Avramopoulos has dismissed the case, describing it as “burda” (nonsense) and insisting he is only being questioned by Belgian police, not the judiciary, whom he accused of “expediency.”

This whole story is nonsense.

The warrant was not sent through the Ministry of Justice but directly to the Greek police, which Avramopoulos claims shows it is a police matter, not a judicial one. He also alleged that Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis kept the warrant in his drawer for two to three days before acting, and that the prime minister’s office was informed.

Greek government: no cover-up, process followed

Government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis rejected any suggestion of special treatment. “Nobody is covering for anyone. The authorities received the request, forwarded it directly to the prosecutor, and the prosecutor is following the prescribed procedure,” he said. He confirmed the warrant was transmitted within 24 hours to the competent prosecutor and then to Parliament for the immunity-lifting procedure. Marinakis also said that Avramopoulos’s answers “seem convincing,” but only the justice system can decide.

Let us not rush to judge. Mr Avramopoulos has given answers that appear convincing. Whether what he says is true, justice will decide.

He defended Minister Chrysochoidis, noting that the procedure is handled by the Hellenic Police and does not pass through the minister’s desk, and that the relevant officials left no room for doubt about the handling of the case.

The road ahead in Parliament

The Greek Parliament is expected to vote on lifting Avramopoulos’s immunity in the coming days. The matter will first go before the Ethics Committee, whose chairman, George Georgantas, has indicated he is ready to call a session as early as next week. Avramopoulos will be invited to provide explanations.

Tensions inside New Democracy

The affair has stirred internal friction within the ruling party. Avramopoulos openly criticized Minister Chrysochoidis, while sources at the Ministry of Citizen Protection responded that no citizen receives preferential treatment and that police services handle sensitive cases without leaks. Marinakis stressed that the decision on whether Avramopoulos will remain on New Democracy’s electoral lists rests solely with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.