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STRASBOURG, 25 April 2024 - MEPs condemn Russian attempts to interfere in the European Parliament and the upcoming European elections. This is in response to the scandal over the Russian-funded news website Voice of Europe. The resolution adopted calls for the extension of anti-Russian sanctions packages and a more effective fight against interference and disinformation campaigns. Markéta Gregorová, MEP for the Pirates, has long warned against Russian hybrid threats.
According to the Czech BIS (Security and Information Service), the Voice of Europe portal is operated by pro-Kremlin businessmen, including Medvedchuk, a Russian oligarch close to Putin, in order to influence the European elections. The Czech government has already placed the website on a sanctions list. "Voice of Europe has long spread far-right or even disinformation narratives. In Germany, thanks to the findings, at least two MEPs from the far-right ID faction are now under investigation for suspicion of taking bribes to spread Russian propaganda in the European Parliament. After all, Putin has an unquestionable interest in the elections to the European Parliament, because if we help Ukraine less, who benefits most? Putin," Gregorová explains the context of the scandal.
The approved resolution calls on Member States to expand and fine-tune sanctions packages against the Russian Federation in order to more effectively curb the war of aggression. According to the text, the European Parliament should conduct a thorough investigation and assess all possible cases of Russian interference with a potential impact on the outcome of the European Parliament elections. It is also necessary to step up efforts to combat organised foreign corruption and disinformation campaigns.
This week MEPs also gave final approval to the extension of trade liberalisation with Ukraine. According to Gregorova, this is one of the most important votes of the year. However, she said the result was also unfortunately influenced by Russian disinformation. "The free trade agreement will help stabilise Ukraine's war-torn economy and further strengthen relations with the EU. However, I am disappointed with the outcome. It was influenced, among other things, by Russian disinformation, which prompted many concessions to farmers. The relaxation of trade with Ukraine affected only 1.2 % of agricultural imports into the EU - on the other hand, we are now depriving Ukraine of EUR 330 million. This is better than having no agreement at all, which is what the irresponsible MEP Hlaváček from ANO tried to do with populist amendments, but it is still a loss. That is why I am delighted at least with the Commission's promise to negotiate a permanent relaxation of mutual trade relations with Ukraine, which is a huge victory in bringing Ukraine closer to our common market," says Gregorova.
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