Belgian prosecutors have confirmed five people have been charged in a far-reaching investigation involving Chinese telecom giant Huawei and alleged political corruption inside the European Parliament. Authorities say the case centers on bribery disguised as lobbying, stretching back to 2021.
Four suspects face charges tied to corruption and involvement in a criminal organization. A fifth was released under conditions while being investigated for money laundering. Prosecutors said the suspects used free travel, food, match tickets and payments to sway political figures toward pro-China positions.
What is going on in Europe?
The E.U. is now embroiled in a spiraling corruption & bribery scandal involving CCP spy gear maker Huawei.
The corruption scandal involves “preliminary charges of active corruption, forgery of documents, money laundering” at the European Parliament. pic.twitter.com/guS56y8TZK
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) March 14, 2025
The probe includes a 2021 letter authored and signed by members of the European Parliament. Though Huawei was not named, the letter strongly opposed any move by the EU to restrict Chinese equipment over national security fears. It is now under scrutiny as potentially being produced in exchange for money.
Corruption in the Parliament – Same old?
"Huawei had a great interest, big money" @petras_petras
"There's rules to enforce ethics guidelines, but they choose not to" @swheaton
"This is unacceptable" R. Lewis @Brussels_School
Watch #BrusselsMyLove all weekend on @euronews pic.twitter.com/hKdMoM4F84
— euronews (@euronews) March 23, 2025
Authorities believe the person who wrote the letter may have been promised more than $16,000. Lawmakers who endorsed it allegedly received around $1,600 each. Italian MEP Fulvio Martusciello signed the document, and his assistant along with a former adviser have since been arrested.
Belgian police conducted raids on Huawei's offices in Brussels and the homes of the company's lobbyists as part of an investigation into alleged corruption within the European Parliament. Authorities suspect that the Chinese tech giant offered bribes and luxury privileges to… pic.twitter.com/aeYxCARFrN
— TVP World (@TVPWorld_com) March 15, 2025
Despite being tipped off about possible wrongdoing, the European Union’s anti-fraud agency, OLAF, declined to open an inquiry. The agency argued the allegations didn’t meet its internal threshold at the time. OLAF’s inaction is now drawing increased scrutiny.
2025.3.16 Belgium is investigating Huawei, a CCP military-linked company associated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), over allegations of bribing European Parliament members and engaging in illegal lobbying to undermine espionage accusations and sway EU policies. Raids… pic.twitter.com/GfLxwBIQ9S
— 台灣寶島農場🇹🇼 (@N0000024) March 17, 2025
The charges were announced after police raided 21 properties in Belgium and Portugal, including several connected to Parliament staff. European Parliament offices were searched again as recently as this past Monday.
Huawei not only uses predatory pricing practices to undercut the more secure western products but it appears they use bribery too…https://t.co/zDNuCJ3W7h
— Rob Joyce (@RGB_Lights) March 19, 2025
Huawei has responded by reaffirming its commitment to complying with all laws, stating that the company maintains a “zero tolerance policy” for corruption.
