The European Parliament has launched an investigation into allegations that Tatjana Ždanoka, a Latvian member of the assembly, has been working as a Russian agent for several years. The president of the European Union's legislative body, Roberta Metsola, has expressed her deep concern regarding these reports and has requested that a parliamentary committee responsible for handling the code of conduct for EU lawmakers look into the matter.
According to diverse Russian, Nordic, and Baltic news outlets, Ždanoka has allegedly been serving as an agent for the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) since 2004. The Insider, an independent Russian investigative journalism site, along with its Latvian counterpart Re:Baltica, the news portal Delfi Estonia, and the Swedish newspaper Expressen, conducted a joint investigation and published leaked emails demonstrating Ždanoka's purported interactions with her handler.
Expressen claimed that Ždanoka was involved in spreading propaganda about alleged violations of the rights of Russians in the Baltics, advocating for a pro-Kremlin policy, and importantly, refusing to condemn Russia's military aggression against Ukraine while serving as a member of the European Parliament.
In response to these allegations, Metsola intends to discuss the case with leaders of the political groups within the parliament. It should be noted that Ždanoka is an independent member of the assembly and does not belong to any specific political group.
The European Parliament has refrained from further commenting on the issue and directed additional inquiries to the Latvian authorities. Latvia, as well as neighboring Estonia, have sizeable ethnic Russian populations due to their historical ties with the Soviet Union. Both countries have actively condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and have strengthened their defenses along their borders with Russia. Ždanoka has not replied to the emailed questions sent by The Associated Press regarding the accusations. However, her representative informed a Latvian news portal that she is considering legal action against the four news outlets for their reports.
While Latvia's security service, the VDD, plans to investigate Ždanoka's alleged cooperation with Russian intelligence and security services, it clarified that her activities from 2005 to 2013 are not qualified as criminal due to the absence of legislation regarding assistance to foreign states or organizations during that period. The VDD emphasized that her status as a deputy in the European Parliament, along with her legal immunity, enabled her to support Russia's geopolitical interests.
The Kremlin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, dismissed the accusations against Ždanoka as a 'witch hunt' and drew parallels to McCarthyism in the United States, implying that the allegations were unfounded and judged without evidence. He criticized the interpretation of democracy prevailing in Europe and questioned the conformity of these actions to democratic ideals.
It is worth mentioning that Elizaveta Peskova, Dmitry Peskov's daughter, previously worked as an intern at the European Parliament for six months, raising concerns among several lawmakers about the potential security implications. However, officials clarified that she only had access to public files during her time there.
The European Parliament's rules stipulate that members shall act independently, being free from instructions and binding mandates. The code of conduct, although non-binding, mandates lawmakers to work solely in the public interest, with integrity, diligence, and respect for the dignity and reputation of the parliament. Furthermore, legislators are required to submit detailed declarations of their private interests and disclose any potential conflicts of interest.
As investigations unfold, the European Parliament aims to maintain transparency and integrity in its proceedings, ensuring that lawmakers uphold the principles and values upon which the institution is founded.
