Μake us preferred on Google Outgoing European Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruța Kövesi has described the dispute over renewing prosecutors’ mandates in Greece as the clearest attempt to intimidate the European Public Prosecutor’s Office during her seven-year tenure.
Speaking in an interview with Politico, Kövesi said: “The most blatant attempt to intimidate EPPO happened in Greece, where we had this issue with the renewal of the European delegated prosecutors.”
Her remarks concern a confrontation over the terms of prosecutors handling sensitive investigations, including alleged fraud involving EU agricultural subsidies administered through Greece’s OPEKEPE payments agency.
Kövesi rejected accusations that the office’s investigations followed a political timetable. She argued that approaching elections could not justify suspending prosecutors’ work and said attention should focus on whether agricultural funding reached genuine farmers.
She also defended the request to lift the immunity of 11 Greek MPs, explaining that removing parliamentary protection allows investigators to gather evidence and does not constitute a finding of guilt.
In July, EPPO announced indictments against 22 defendants, including four serving MPs, while dismissing allegations against seven other serving lawmakers. Those indicted remain presumed innocent.
The Greece-related criticism formed part of a broader warning about EPPO’s future. Kövesi said inadequate funding, delayed reforms and bureaucratic obstacles risked weakening the office’s ability to investigate crimes involving EU money.
The dispute over Greek prosecutors’ appointments had already prompted a formal intervention. In May, EPPO said it had notified the European Commission that Greece’s Supreme Judicial Council had refused to recognise the full effect of its decision to renew three delegated prosecutors’ mandates for five years. It also raised concerns about legislative changes affecting investigations involving MPs.
EPPO is the EU’s independent prosecution office responsible for crimes against its financial interests. Kövesi’s successor, German prosecutor Andrés Ritter, takes office on November 1. He has served as deputy European chief prosecutor since November 2020.
