Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Sep 01, 2025

EU’s Qatar corruption scandal brings French links under scrutiny

EU’s Qatar corruption scandal brings French links under scrutiny

French lawmakers have questioned the country’s lobbying rules in light of the EU scandal.

Just as French President Emmanuel Macron is swooping into Qatar for the historic World Cup match between France and Morocco, the Gulf state’s corruption scandal in the European Parliament is making its way to Paris. 

The French head of state ignored calls from opposition lawmakers — including former presidential candidate and Greens MEP Yannick Jadot — to cancel his trip in the wake of the allegations that have already taken down European Parliament former Vice President Eva Kaili.

It’s no surprise that the Qatar corruption scandal at the heart of the EU has become part of the political conversation in France, as Paris has had a decades-long special — and sometimes controversial — relationship with Doha in areas including security, energy and culture.  

The Gulf state has also heavily invested in France and owns one of the country’s flagship football clubs: Paris Saint-Germain. 

On Tuesday, the French government was confronted in the National Assembly by the opposition about the national rules on lobbying. The framework, a Socialist lawmaker argued, is not fit-for-purpose to prevent similar corruption from foreign countries in France. 

“The facts you mention are serious, it is up to the European institutions to shed light on them and draw consequences,” replied junior minister Olivia Grégoire, adding that the executive branch is open to taking another look at the rules to make them stronger. 

The corruption allegations in the European Parliament have so far spared French MEPs. Several French lawmakers in Brussels including Manon Aubry and Leïla Chaibi from the Left group said they had been approached by the Gulf state but declined to engage. 

However, France is far from immune from the petromonarchy’s influence. 

Qatar has long-running close ties with France’s political elite, including former French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

An ongoing investigation by the French financial prosecutor’s office is looking into potential corruption charges related to Qatar being awarded the 2022 World Cup and the role played by high-ranking French officials.

The World Cup has proven controversial in France, including with left-leaning mayors who decided to boycott the game. In November, Alexis Corbière, a leading figure on the left, publicly denounced Qatar’s intense lobbying efforts to change his mind on the World Cup, which he labelled a “social, ecological and democratic aberration.” 

Nonetheless, in France’s Parliament, Qatar has emerged as a go-to destination for lawmakers, according to data analyzed by POLITICO’s Paris Influence. 



Qatar is the fourth most-visited country by French MPs and senators since 2019, ranking right behind high-profile countries that are targets of French diplomacy such as Israel, the U.S. and China. In total, 12 lawmakers have spent a total of 38 days in the country.

And while lawmakers’ foreign trips can be financed by the private sector, trips to Qatar have been funded directly by the Gulf state, as evidenced in official records. 

Official records however do not provide information on budgets and spending, which makes it harder to put a price tag on those travels.

A few lawmakers including centrist senator Olivier Cadic, a staunch defender of Doha, have attended games at the Qatar World Cup. If France wins the semi finals, Macron will travel back to the Arabian peninsula on Sunday.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×