BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Belgian prosecutors said on Thursday they had detained several individuals over suspected bribery in the European Parliament allegedly for the benefit of China’s Huawei.
Belgian investigators carried out searches of 21 premises across Belgium and in Portugal on Thursday morning. A judge had since requested that the offices of two parliamentary assistants be sealed, federal prosecutors said.
Huawei said it took the allegations seriously and would urgently communicate with authorities to fully understand the situation.
“Huawei has a zero tolerance policy towards corruption or other wrongdoing, and we are committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations at all times,” it said.
The Belgian prosecutors said the alleged corruption had taken place “very discreetly” since 2021 under the guise of commercial lobbying and involved payments for taking political positions or excessive gifts such as food and travel expenses or regular invitations to football matches.
“The alleged bribery is said to have benefited Huawei,” the prosecutors’ statement added.
The European Parliament said it had received a request from Belgian authorities to assist the investigation and would swiftly and full comply with it.
Prosecutors said a suspect had also been arrested in France.
They did not disclose the names of the people involved or information that could lead to them being identified.
Prosecutors said the people had been detained for questioning over their alleged involvement in corruption in the European Parliament, as well as forgery and use of false documents.
(Reporting by Geert De Clercq, Bart Meijer and Philip Blenkinsop; Editing by Alex Richardson, Angus MacSwan, Sudip Kar-Gupta and Andrew Heavens)
