Belgian authorities searched Huawei’s headquarters in Brussels
By ForGeeks Belgian authorities have launched a major investigation against Huawei over possible corruption in the European Parliament. Police officers searched the company’s headquarters in Brussels, as well as 20 other locations in Belgium and Portugal. The operation has resulted in arrests.
Huawei’s headquarters in Brussels
Huawei suspected of bribing EU officials
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The investigation relates to bribery, document forgery and money laundering, according to the Belgian prosecutor’s office. The investigation believes that Huawei representatives bribed European Parliament officials to influence EU decisions in favor of the Chinese company. As part of the operation, the court ordered the offices of two parliamentary aides allegedly involved in the corruption scheme to be sealed.
The key figure in the investigation is Huawei’s EU director
The investigation was initiated after stories were published on the Follow the Money platform and in the Belgian publications Le Soir and Knack. The journalists revealed that one of the main suspects is Valerio Ottati, Huawei’s director of government relations in the EU. He previously worked as an aide to two Italian MEPs on China-related issues.
He is also the director of government relations for Huawei in the EU.
According to Follow the Money’s source, Ottati had no technical qualifications and was appointed to Huawei solely because of his political connections.
According to Follow the Money’s source, Ottati had no technical qualifications and was appointed to Huawei solely because of his political connections.
EU reaction and concerns over 5G
The European Commission has so far refrained from commenting on the investigation. However, its spokesman Thomas Regnier recalled that the EU has already expressed concerns about Huawei’s involvement in the creation of European 5G networks.
“Huawei carries significantly higher risks than other 5G vendors,” he said, adding that EU countries have been advised to limit or completely exclude the company from their telecom networks.
