EU court holds Ursula von der Leyen responsible for concealing vaccine contract messages

The European Court of Justice has found European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen accountable for withholding information regarding contracts for the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines between 2021 and 2023.

The court ruled that the plaintiff’s arguments were justified, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

The accusations against von der Leyen were brought forward by The New York Times in 2023, which claimed that the European Commission President unjustifiably refused to release SMS communications in which she had discussed the terms of vaccine purchase agreements worth over €30 billion with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.

The court's decision highlights growing concerns over transparency in high-level EU negotiations.

Notably, von der Leyen has come under scrutiny after it was revealed that she concealed key messages related to the EU’s COVID-19 vaccine contracts. The European ombudsman has launched an investigation into the matter following accusations that von der Leyen’s text messages with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla were not properly disclosed. These messages were pivotal in negotiations for the vaccine procurement deal, which has been a subject of significant public interest.

The controversy began when documents were requested by European Parliament members, and it was discovered that von der Leyen had failed to hand over the full correspondence. The messages in question were reportedly deleted, raising concerns about transparency and accountability in the EU’s vaccine strategy. Critics argue that withholding these communications undermines trust in the decision-making process, particularly given the financial scale of the vaccine deals.

Von der Leyen has defended her actions, stating that there was no intention to conceal information.

By Aghakazim Guliyev