In a stunning development that has sent shockwaves through European political circles, Belgian authorities have detained Federica Mogherini, the former European Union foreign policy chief, as part of a major corruption investigation. The probe, spearheaded by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), centers on the alleged mismanagement of funds allocated to the European Diplomatic Academy, a flagship training program for young EU diplomats. Alongside Mogherini, Stefano Sannino, a former senior official within the European External Action Service (EEAS), and a director from the prestigious College of Europe were also taken into custody for questioning.
The detentions followed coordinated raids conducted by Belgian Federal Police at the request of EPPO prosecutors. Law enforcement officials executed search warrants at multiple high-profile locations, including the EEAS headquarters in Brussels and buildings belonging to the College of Europe in Bruges. Several private residences were also searched. The investigative focus is on financial activities during the period when the diplomatic academy was established under Mogherini’s purview and Sannino’s subsequent tenure as the EEAS’s top administrative official.
The implications of this scandal are profound, striking at the heart of the EU’s institutional integrity. Mogherini, who served as the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy from 2014 to 2019, is a prominent political figure across the continent. Her subsequent appointment as Rector of the College of Europe, an elite institution that has groomed generations of European bureaucrats and diplomats, added to her stature. The College’s deep association with the very fabric of EU governance makes its entanglement in this investigation particularly damaging to the bloc’s credibility.
Similarly, Stefano Sannino’s involvement underscores the probe’s reach into the upper echelons of the European civil service. His role as Secretary-General of the EEAS placed him at the operational core of the EU’s foreign policy apparatus during the academy’s formative years. The European Diplomatic Academy itself was conceived as a cornerstone for fostering a cohesive EU diplomatic identity, making the alleged corruption surrounding its funding a severe irony that has not gone unnoticed in Brussels’ corridors of power.
As of this reporting, an unusual silence emanates from the implicated institutions. Neither the EEAS nor the College of Europe has issued public statements addressing the raids or the detentions, a reticence that observers interpret as a sign of the gravity of the situation. The investigation remains ongoing, with the three individuals facing intensive interrogation by anti-fraud investigators. The EPPO’s involvement signals the seriousness of the allegations, as the independent body is tasked specifically with prosecuting crimes against the EU’s financial interests.
This case promises to have protracted political and institutional repercussions. It arrives at a time of heightened scrutiny over the EU’s financial stewardship and could galvanize calls for more stringent oversight mechanisms. For now, the spectacle of a former foreign policy chief being detained has not only rattled diplomatic circles in Brussels and Rome but has also sown deep unease about accountability within the Union’s most venerable training grounds for its future leaders.