Dimitris Avramopoulos, a former European commissioner and current Greek New Democracy lawmaker, said the arrest warrant issued against him by Belgian authorities over his alleged involvement in the Qatargate scandal is “nonsense.”
The arrest warrant alleges breaches of post-mandate ethics conditions linked to his cooperation with the NGO at the center of the Qatargate scandal. Those conditions allowed Avramopoulos to work with Fight Impunity – established by former Italian MEP Antonio Panzeri, who negotiated a plea bargain with Belgian authorities early on in the case – on the condition that, for two years after leaving office, he would not engage in lobbying or influence activities on matters falling within his former portfolio as Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship (2014-2019).
“When my term as Commissioner ended, I was at a gap. I did not receive any salary. Until I could run for office again in Greek parliament, I had to do something…And I accepted this offer which was €5,000 which was actually €3,500, which I received for a year,” he told SKAI TV when asked about the money he received. “There is no audit. There is a discussion about why I was being paid. I was being paid because Mrs Von der Leyen approved it”, he said.
