(191213) -- BRUSSELS, Dec. 13, 2019 (Xinhua) -- European Commission President Ur The European Ombudsman has opened an inquiry into the European Commission's refusal to release messages from a private group chat involving Ursula von der Leyen, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders. The investigation will assess whether the commission complied with EU transparency rules in handling the request for access to the communications.
An EU watchdog has opened an inquiry into European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen over the commission's refusal to release messages from a private group chat involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several European leaders, according to Dutch investigative outlet Follow the Money (FTM).
The inquiry follows a complaint by FTM after the European Commission declined to disclose messages from the group chat, which reportedly included German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The commission reportedly argued that releasing the communications could harm the European Union's relations with third countries.
In a letter sent to the commission last week and cited by FTM, European Ombudsman Teresa Anjinho said she had opened an inquiry into the decision to withhold the messages.
