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yesterday

Greece Replaces Top Officials After EU Farm Subsidy Fraud Probe

Parliamentary immunity rules may shield ministers accused in a 3,000-page EPPO dossier on farm subsidy fraud

FILE- Greece's Minister of Migration Makis Voridis, centre, attends a swearing in ceremony at the Presidential palace, in Athens, Greece, on March 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis, File)
Greek Agriculture Minister Makis Voridis (C) addresses journalists during a news conference in Athens, Greece, February 6, 2020. REUTERS/Constantina Peppa/ File Photo

Overview

  • Migration Minister Makis Voridis and four other senior officials resigned after being named as suspects in allegations of false pastureland declarations that enabled illicit EU subsidy claims.
  • Thanos Plevris assumed the migration portfolio Monday alongside new deputies Haris Theocharis for foreign affairs, Yiannis Andrianos for rural development, and Christos Dermentzopoulos for digital governance.
  • The European Commission imposed a €392.2 million penalty and reduced Greece’s future farm payments by 5% after uncovering mismanagement of roughly €2.4 billion in subsidies from 2016 to 2022.
  • A 3,000-page file from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office alleges a “criminal organization” within OPEKEPE that exploited weak controls to divert EU funds.
  • Athens has pledged to merge OPEKEPE with the independent tax authority to strengthen oversight while parliament considers lifting immunity for implicated lawmakers.