European Ombudsman Teresa Anjinho has opened an investigation into European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen over a secret chat that included Volodymyr Zelensky and several European leaders, the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung reported.
The group also included German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
The investigation does not concern the contents of the chat, but whether the Commission violated transparency rules by refusing to grant access to the correspondence.
The chat’s existence became public in January. The Dutch investigative organization Follow the Money later requested access to the correspondence, but the Commission rejected the request on the pretext that publication could damage the EU’s relations with countries outside the bloc. According to media reports, the group discussed strategies for dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump, among other matters.
The investigation is expected to last several months. A meeting between Commission representatives and Anjinho is expected before mid-July.
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