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Status: 13.03.2021 12:37 pm
The Union responds to allegations of corruption in relation to Azerbaijan. How to investigate with Contrasts they show that there have been long-standing contacts there and with Kazakhstan, which has an equally authoritarian and corrupt leadership.
By Silvia Stöber, tagesschau.de and Andrea Becker,
rbb
When parliamentarians meet at the Council of Europe, they are often preceded by hustle and bustle at the “Palais de l’Europe” in Strasbourg. MEPs from all 47 member states vote in parliamentary groups or individually. When heads of government appear in plenary sessions, questions are coordinated to exert specific pressure. Or it is about voting behavior when accepting reports on human rights violations in individual member states.
In the latter case, the MEPs evidently allowed themselves to be corrupted and violated the code of conduct of the Council of Europe. An independent investigation commissioned by the Council of Europe reached its conclusion in 2018 and it had consequences.
The member of the CDU of the Bundestag Karin Strenz and the former member of the CSU of the Bundestag Eduard Lintner were excluded for life from the Council of Europe. Lintner had worked as a lobbyist for authoritarian Azerbaijan. The funds flowed to Strenz, among others, through its companies and banks. Like other Council of Europe MEPs, he had campaigned notoriously for the Caspian Sea country, especially in connection with a 2013 report on political prisoners.
Imprisonment for corruption
It wasn’t until January that Italian conservative Luca Volontè was sentenced to four years in prison by a Milan court. He appealed for a review. Italian investigative journalist Sara Menafra estimates that the verdict of the Supreme Court is not expected in years.
Investigations are ongoing against Strenz, Lintner and a lawyer. According to a Transparency International 2019 announcement, the Rostock prosecutor initially saw no reason for this. But then the Frankfurt am Main prosecutor’s office took over the case and started searches at the two offices and private homes. Meanwhile, the Munich prosecutor’s office took over and had CDU deputy Axel Fischer searched because of the initial suspicion of bribery.
To make this possible, the Bundestag lifted the immunity of Strenz and Fischer. Strenz was also fined 19,000 euros, the highest possible fine in the Bundestag for members of the Bundestag. But he is still exercising his mandate and, unlike his colleagues in the party on the current masks affair, so far it has had no consequences.
Traditional proximity to Azerbaijan
How to investigate with Contrast ARD-Politikmagazin shows, the Union’s politicians have long been noticed through contacts with Azerbaijan, which is rich in oil and gas. Many activities are not illegal. They fall into a gray area or are considered to be in contact. But the leaders around President Ilham Aliyev, who rule the state in authoritarian ways and with massive corruption, can be helped to starve him of resources.
Already in 2010, the then president of the Junge Union, Philipp Missfelder, confirmed that he knew Tale Heydarov. The son of the powerful Minister of Emergency Situations participated in an intense lobbying for his country with the organization “The Europen Azerbaijan Society”. Reports of Heydarov’s ties to politicians in Europe were found on the organization’s website.
Recently resigned members of the Bundestag Mark Hauptmann and Nikolas Löbel also attracted attention years ago with their pro-Azerbaijani positions. Hauptmann organized “economic dialogues” with Baku and gave Azerbaijan a platform in his constituency newspaper. Löbel sponsored events of the Azerbaijan Youth Union. CDU Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Thomas Bareiß has faced allegations of lobbying in favor of Azerbaijan since Friday.
Baku temptations
Azerbaijan was confident of exerting influence in Europe and the United States long before Russia relied on mass propaganda and disinformation starting in 2014.
This included pressure on critical politicians such as then-SPD MP Christoph Strässer with a media campaign and visa denial against him, on the one hand, and balanced politician travel, gifts and generous fees on the other.
One of the objectives was to find support in the conflict with the belligerent Armenia for Nagorno-Karabakh. Before the third war broke out in the region last fall, Aliyev had been increasingly aggressive and had long talked about a military solution. A victory had become realistic through extensive arms purchases abroad, while international pressure for a peaceful exit was lacking.
Azerbaijan is also seeking investors in new industries as oil resources are being depleted. Another objective is to give the population itself the impression that other countries consider the government to be democratic. With each positive statement by a Western European politician in the media close to the government, the opposition becomes more defensive. Many critics of the government lost trust in organizations such as the EU and the Council of Europe.
Weighted Election Observers
Statements by “international election observers” are particularly important in securing power. MEPs like Strenz and Fischer also played a role there. In 2010, Lintner had also hired CDU parliamentary group colleague Manfred Grund, as Strenz reported on his website.
Union deputies are also active east of the Caspian Sea: Strenz and Grund are also interested in good relations with Kazakhstan. This state also has energy resources. It is ruled in an authoritarian manner and is known for international corruption scandals, which meanwhile fill books with titles like “Dictators Without Borders.”
Both are active members of the board of directors of the German-Kazakh Society. Grund received the highest foreign order in Kazakhstan. You are a welcome guest at the Kazakhstan embassy, where you can be personally briefed on the most important points of the president’s annual message. Strenz, in turn, co-founded the “Berlin Eurasian Club” in 2012, which aims to promote economic relations with Kazakhstan.
On his website, Strenz praises the “construction work” and “courageous transformations” under the leadership of Nursultan Naserbajew, 29-year-old president and since 2019 “leader of the nation” and head of the National Security Council.
In 2015, Strenz had the opportunity to inform her personally because she was on site as an election observer. Nazarbayev was reelected with 97 percent of the vote. The Kazakh press quoted Strenz with words of praise for the high level of electoral activity in the country. So far, she has not released any information about who invited her and paid for the trip.
