Failed Guy Verhofstadt lashes out against Viktor Orban

The ultrarich politician keeps sending messages on social media. In the past, he was closely connected to the Russian energy business.

Brüsszel, 2018. február 28. Guy Verhofstadt, az Európai Parlament Brexit-ügyi referense az EP brüsszeli plenáris ülésén 2018. február 28-án. (MTI/EPA/Stephanie Lecocq) Fotó: STEPHANIE LECOCQ

The Ghent City Council has deflected criticism by saying that the money was given to the listed building, not to the owner, and that the renovation will contribute to the development of the city’s image. It’s true that the building was uninhabitable before the renovation and conversion, but thanks to the generous subsidy, the Verhofstadts were able to get away with renewing their family home at almost half the personal cost.

It is also interesting that Verhofstadt is making the accusation of stabbing Ukraine in the back although he was sitting on the board of directors of a shipping company – for 60,000 euros a year – which also had a contract with Russia's  largest company, Gazprom, and thus he happens to be directly linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moreover, this contract was concluded at a time when Russia had just annexed Crimea.

Moreover, it also came to light that this shipping company tried to evade its tax obligations through an offshore company.

As our newspaper  reported, Verhofstadt recently announced that he will not run again in the EP elections in 2024.

It is a rather strange coincidence that the politician with a past marred by scandals leaves politics just after the eruption of the Brussels corruption scandal that shook the European Parliament.

He himself had been implicated in lobbying that raised the suspicion of graft as he also lobbied for the interests of oligarchs. He has a particularly close relationship with Nicolas Boel, owner of the Sofina holding company, which has an interest in GdF Suez.

Soon after the latter company wanted to acquire the waterworks of Thessaloniki, Greece, Mr Verhofstadt demanded a privatisation package from Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in the European Parliament. 

At this time, Verhofstadt also sat on the board of the APG pension fund, and after his speech attacking PM Tsipras and Greece, three Greek ministers met with the leaders of APG within six months.

George Soros and Guy Verhofstadt

But it was not only Nicolas Boel's interests that Guy Verhofstadt lobbied for in the European Parliament as a key figure in the ALDE group. He is also known tomaintain a good relationship with US billionaire speculator and oligarch George Soros, and is considered as a trusted ally. He himself reported on his meetings with the US businessman.

It again led to considerable outcry when it was revealed that the ALDE party group was also financed by multinational corporations such as Monsanto, Microsoft, Google, Uber, Syngenta or Walt Disney, as some of these multinational companies are not registered in EU member states, but, for example, in the United States, Switzerland or various islands operating as tax havens.

This means that non-European companies and oligarchs may have intervened in the European Parliament elections. And it’s obvious that the US companies did not provide funding to the liberal party group out of sheer kindness.

It is noteworthy that Verhofstadt's name also came up in connection with the corruption scandal in Brussels precisely because of his lobbying activities. As it  turned out, not so long ago, in 2018, Guy Verhofstadt attended a conference in Morocco with Eva Kaili, one of the key figures in the Brussels corruption scandal, Eva Kaili.

Cover photo: Guy Verhofstadt (Photo: MTI/EPA/Stephanie Lecocq)