European Commission admits loss of von der Leyen’s vaccine texts with Pfizer CEO

In a fresh twist to the ongoing vaccine procurement transparency controversy, the European Commission has admitted that text messages exchanged between Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla—regarding the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines for EU member states—have either been lost or deliberately not preserved.

As reported by The New York Times (NYT), the messages in question were part of a broader effort to obtain records surrounding the EU's vaccine contracts during the pandemic. The newspaper had previously filed an official request for the correspondence but was denied access.

The latest development comes as the EC now acknowledges that the text messages did exist, but are no longer available.

The controversy dates back to spring, when an EU court found von der Leyen liable for withholding information about vaccine procurement contracts signed between 2021 and 2023. The New York Times initiated legal action against the Commission in 2023, accusing von der Leyen of unjustifiably refusing to release relevant text messages, particularly those exchanged with Bourla, reportedly in early 2021.

This week, the Commission provided a more detailed response to journalists, which the Times reviewed. The explanation confirms that the text messages were read by Björn Seibert, head of von der Leyen’s cabinet, during the summer of 2021. However, the Commission determined that the content of the messages did not merit classification or registration in the EC’s internal document management system.

As cited in the NYT, the Commission stated that the messages “did not require any further action on the part of the European Commission and its services,” which is why no relevant documents were logged or saved. The report further suggests that this decision not to archive the correspondence was made after the Commission received a first media inquiry in May 2021 — from a journalist at a German news outlet.

The Times underscores that the latest response essentially confirms the messages were deleted or ignored, raising new questions about accountability and transparency at the highest levels of the EU’s executive body.

By Tamilla Hasanova