EU funding to persons/organisations linked to EU-designated terror groups

18.5.2020

Question for written answer E-003051/2020
to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Rule 138
Anna-Michelle Asimakopoulou (PPE), Lukas Mandl (PPE), Alexandr Vondra (ECR), Carmen Avram (S&D), Petras Auštrevičius (Renew), Nicola Beer (Renew), Frédérique Ries (Renew), Antonio López-Istúriz White (PPE), Charlie Weimers (ECR), Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi (PPE)

On 30 April 2020, Sven Kühn von Burgsdorff, head of the EU Office to the West Bank and Gaza Strip, wrote in a letter to the Palestinian NGO Network [1] that ‘a natural person affiliated to, sympathizing with, or supporting any of the groups or entities mentioned in the EU restrictive list is not excluded from benefiting from EU-funded activities unless his/her exact name and surname (confirming his/her identity) corresponds to any of the natural persons on the EU restrictive lists’.

Von Burgsdorff’s statement contravenes Article 1.5 bis of Annex II of the ‘General Conditions applicable to European Union-financed grant contracts for external actions’.

In light of the above,

1.Can the EEAS confirm that no funding has been given to persons/organisations linked to EU-designated terror groups?
2.What action does the EEAS plan to take with regard to Mr von Burgsdorff’s statement?
3.Is the EEAS considering a review of the EU’s overall funding rules to ensure that persons/organisations linked to EU-designated terror groups are not eligible for EU funds?