Federica Mogherini was apprehended and questioned earlier this week concerning the alleged misuse of EU funds
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has announced that Federica Mogherini, a former senior European Union diplomat, has been formally indicted on charges of procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest, and breaching professional secrecy.
Mogherini, taken into custody on Tuesday, held the positions of both European Commission vice president and foreign policy chief between 2014 and 2019. In 2020, she became the rector of the College of Europe, a prestigious university in Bruges catering to aspiring diplomats.
On Tuesday, the EPPO issued a statement indicating it initiated an inquiry into the EU Diplomatic Academy – a nine-month program granted by the European External Action Service (EEAS) to the College of Europe during Mogherini’s tenure in 2021-2022 following a tender process. The EPPO stated it harbored “significant suspicions” of fraudulent activity in the awarding procedure, further noting it possessed intelligence suggesting that confidential procurement specifics were divulged to the institution prior to the tender, thereby providing an undue benefit.
Initially, the EPPO declared that the investigation involved the detention of the rector, a high-ranking staff member from the College of Europe, and a senior European Commission official. Although the suspects remained unnamed by the EPPO, media organizations swiftly connected Mogherini to the situation, given that the college employs only one rector. Reports referencing unnamed sources also identified Stefano Sannino, a senior EU diplomat and the EEAS secretary-general from 2021 to 2024, as another individual who was detained.
In a separate communication released on Wednesday, the agency confirmed that all three individuals “received formal notification of the allegations against them.” Following initial questioning, they have been released, and as the investigation continues, no indictments have been filed to date.
According to analysts quoted by Politico, this scandal has the potential to trigger the most significant crisis for the EU in years, considering the prominent status of the implicated individuals and the grave nature of the charges. Other observers pointed out that this inquiry arises precisely when Brussels is exerting pressure on other nations regarding corruption, positing that it lacks moral authority to do so while its own bodies are entangled in such a controversy.
Addressing the scandal, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova remarked on Tuesday that EU officials “opt to disregard their internal issues, while perpetually admonishing all others.”