Russia finances Dutch politicians, says Czech service; ‘Cannot go unpunished’

Czech intelligence has taken down a network that spread Russian propaganda in Europe. According to Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, European politicians have also been paid by the Kremlin in this context. “As a former Eastern Bloc country, they are better informed than anyone else about how the Russian services operate, so they should be taken very seriously,” says former chief of the military intelligence and security service Pieter Cobelens.

According to Cobelens, it has long been known that the Russians try to influence, so far nothing new. What does worry Cobelens is that it is a news site that interviews people. ‘If, as an interviewee, you do not look at who is interviewing you, you are suddenly contributing to fake news.’

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The Russian network is said to have used the Czech website Voice of Europe to discourage European Union member states from supporting Ukraine. Fiala claims that the European Parliament has also been ‘reached’, although he did not provide further details. Fiala did announce sanctions against Voice of Europe and two pro-Russian politicians from Ukraine for their involvement.

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Thierry Baudet and Marcel de Graaff

The news site Denik N reports, based on sources at the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that politicians were paid by Voice of Europe with Russian money. In that context, Denik M also mentions FvD leader Thierry Baudet and FVD MEP Marcel de Graaff as those involved. Politicians from the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Hungary and Poland are said to have been approached, and the right-wing nationalist German party Alternative für Deutschland is mentioned by name.

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In an interview with Voice of Europe, Baudet previously stood up for Russia in the war against Ukraine. Of the current Dutch MEPs, De Graaff speaks most often at Voice of Europe. He regularly distributed the articles on the site via social media. In an interview from October last year, he said, among other things, that Europe can only become a serious power bloc by working together with Russia.

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No names

Although the Czech intelligence service mentions that Dutch politicians have also been paid to promote Russia-friendly views, no names are mentioned. According to Cobelens, this does not mean that the intelligence services do not keep an eye on the politicians in question. ‘I do not rule out that if names become known, that kind of information will go to the Public Prosecution Service. Undermining our democracy cannot go unpunished.’

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De Graaff, who always stands up for Russia and Ukraine and criticizes the West, calls the reporting ‘pure slander’ from parties that allow themselves to be fooled by American propaganda. He states that he is only looking for peace, ‘and to spread that message we do not need any payments’.