The Rise and Fall of Eva Kaili: From Greek Prodigy to European Pariah
Six month after the Qatargate blew the brussels bubble up, let's look at the main suspect of the case, former EP Vice-President Eva Kaili. Who was she before the scandal? What will she do now?
It is a story like no other in Brussels.
The dullness and predictability of European politics blew up overnight, on 9 December 2022, when Eva Kaili, a leading figure of the Socialist and Democrat group and Vice-President of the European Parliament, was arrested by the Belgian police over corruption charges.
The main protagonist of the Qatargate, a 45 years old star member of the European Parliament, has become the symbol of impunity in European politics, where powerful figures exchange, outside of public scrutiny, influence and power for money.
But who was Kaili before the arrest? What was her network? Could someone have predicted her arrest and the following scandal? And does she have a future in Europe or Greece, her homeland?
Let’s find out, in this portrait, exactly six months after the start of the Qatargate affair.
The prodigy of the European and Greek socialists
Eva Kaili was born on October 1978 in Telassonoki, Greece.
Her political engagement started at a young age, as she joined the PASOC Youth, the youth section of the Greek Socialist Party at only 15. At only 24, she was elected to the Telassoniki City Council, the youngest woman in this position.
Only two years later, in 2004, she runs for the Greek parliamentary election—again the youngest candidate. She lost but gained enough visibility on the national stage to be offered a position as an anchorwoman at MegaChannel, a private television channel in Greece.
In 2007, she run for a second candidacy to the Greek parliament. This time, she was elected. She was not yet 30 and seated with seasoned Greek politicians. She was elected in 2009 and concluded her term in 2012.
In 2014, a new chapter of her life starts. The European chapter.
A recognised figure in Greek politics, Kaili looked for new challenges and decided to run on the PASOK ticket for the European elections.
This move to Brussels was extremely beneficial to Kaili, even in her private life. There, she met Francesco Giorgi, an Italian parliamentary assistant. The couple gave birth to a daughter.
Kaili is easily reelected in 2019. The new legislature offers her a more important position, more suited to her importance in Greek and European Politics. The Socialist and Democrats group proposed her for the Vice-Presidency of the European Parliament, which involved relations with the main international institutions and the Middle East. In addition, Kaili was also responsible for coordinating new technology issues, such as blockchain or spyware.
In 2021, Kaily reached the highest point of her career. She was a renowned and popular politician in both Greece and Europe—which is no small feat. She was also a key player around critical technological issues, for which her expertise was recognised, and a pillar of the European Parliament, as one of its Vice-Presidents, in charge of an ambitious portfolio.
Things were going so well that Kaili started planning her next move. Will it be an international career or a winning comeback in Greece? In 2021, she was rumoured to plan a bid for the presidency of the PASOK.
In addition, Kaily lives a happy and glamorous life with Giorgi and their daughter, between Greece, Brussels, and the Italian islands, where Francesco Giorgi gives sailing classes to wealthy tourists.
But the irresistible rise of the star child of the European left abruptly ended on 9 December 2022, starting at the same time as what was to be known as the Qatargate.
The Fall of Eva Kaili
On 9 December 2022, the life of Eva Kaili took a drastic turn.
Six months prior, the Belgian authorities opened an investigation into criminal organised bribing involving European elected officials.
The Belgian police set up a series of raids in Brussels on Friday 9 December 2022. Although the house of Kaili was one of the suspects, she could not have been arrested because of her diplomatic immunity as a member of the European Parliament.
It is only after her father, Alexandros Kailis, was caught fleeing with luggage containing some “several hundred thousands of euros” from his hotel, that investigator Michel Claise, who led the raids, decided to arrest Kaili as a flagrante delicto—a reason enough for her to lose her immunity.
Kaili’s home was searched and herself arrested. Her partner Francesco Giorgi was detained too during one of the raids.
In total, the Belgian police seized around 1.5 million euros in cash. Giorgi’s Italian home was searched by the Italian police, which confiscated a further 20 thousand euro, in addition to the couple’s assets being detained back in Greece.
For days after the arrest, Francesco Giorgi confessed to having been bribed by Qatari officials and denied the involvement of Kaili. Since the beginning of her detention, the former Vice-President of the European Parliament never stopped claiming her innocence, and until today refuses to recognise her part in this high-stake corruption scheme on behalf of a foreign power.
In fact, she now defends herself with an alternative story.
The conspiracy-fueled comeback
Eva Kaili was released from detention on April 2023.
Until this day, she has always claimed her innocence, despite concerning evidence and the confession of her life partner.
As I said in other pieces, it’s all about the narrative. Kaili understood this well and is now spreading her own: she’s innocent and she’s been framed.
Eva Kaili claims that her activities at the European Parliament’s Pegasus spyware investigation committee were monitored, a claim that the Belgian investigator never cared to comment on.
“From the court file, my lawyers have discovered that the Belgian secret services have allegedly been monitoring the activities of members of the Pegasus special committee,” she told the Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera.
— Eva Kaili, quoted by Politico Europe
In the last week, Kaili visited a few European newspapers, including Italian Corriere della Sera, Spain’s El Mundo, and France’s Ouest France to promote her narrative.
Her counterparts at the European Parliament were not so happy to hear about it, as they recalled Kaili’s less-than-cooperative behaviours before the scandal blew out.
Politico reported that in an interview in 2022, Eva Kaili said that “surveillance is common and happens in many European countries. She also said it had happened to her and is not a serious issue.”
Furthermore, at the time of the Pegasus investigation, Politico reports, Eva Kaili’s phone was checked for spyware. None were found. Kaili also asked the Pegasus investigation committee not to visit Greece—effectively reducing the effectiveness of the said investigation.
In conclusion, the Quatargate scandal is far from over, and the upcoming judicial part of the affair will bring interesting development.
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Dear reader,
Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this longer—but probably more in-depth—analysis.
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