Italian European People’s Party (EPP) lawmaker Matteo Gazzini, who gave Voice of Europe an interview and participated in a panel debate alongside other MEPs, denied being offered or taking any money.
“Of course not, what a question is this?” he said. “It makes me laugh when you ask me if I got money from Russia … because I come from a very well-off family,” he said, adding that he is an agricultural and real estate entrepreneur who is only in politics to serve his country.
Asked about his comments on a Voice of Europe panel in which he said that Europe should not have the goal of defeating Russia, and instead focus on finding a path to peace in Ukraine, Gazzini said he condemned the invasion and that Russian troops should leave Ukraine. “At the same time, Europe should not help to escalate the situation,” he said.
He also blamed the European Parliament for letting Voice of Europe into the institution, where he said they first approached him. “If they are such a big threat, why [did] the European Parliament let these journalists inside? Why didn’t they check them?” he asked.
His EPP colleague Dennis Radtke, from Germany, said that Gazzini’s membership of the political group “has to be discussed.” Gazzini joined the EPP this year from the far-right Identity and Democracy grouping, having quit his League party to join Forza Italia.
“It underlines my skepticism with former members of Lega and the ID. Whoever is involved in this Russian network has to face consequences … We have to defend our democracy and the integrity of our political institution,” Radtke wrote in a message.
