European Public Prosecutor’s Office: What is happening with the Greek “European prosecutors” and the renewal of their terms

The institution operates from 2021 for financial crimes in the EU and 24 countries participate - Prosecutors belong to national justice systems, but are accountable to the European Union The post European Public Prosecutor’s Office: What is happening with the Greek “European prosecutors” and the renewal of their terms appeared first on ProtoThema English.

Laura Kövesi, who is arriving in Athens on Wednesday, the German successor, and Popi Papandreou – The institution has been operating since 2021 for financial crimes in the EU and 24 countries participate – Prosecutors belong to national justice systems but are accountable to the EU – When the continuation of Papandreou’s term will be decided When, in June 2021, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office began its operational function, undertaking its first investigations into offenses affecting the financial interests of the European Union, it had already been described as one of the most ambitious projects of judicial cooperation at the European level. Today, however, the operation, limits, and competencies of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office are once again at the forefront of public debate, following the case files concerning OPEKEPE that were forwarded to Parliament. In fact, Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis described the European Public Prosecutor’s Office as a “non-serious institution” that could be abolished by law, while claiming that European prosecutor Popi Papandreou, who along with her colleague Dionysis Mouzakis is conducting investigations into possible irregularities and fraud involving EU agricultural subsidies, is exerting pressure regarding the renewal of her term. Georgiadis: European prosecutor Popi Papandreou brought the OPEKEPE case files Within this context, the questions surrounding the operation of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office gain even greater importance: How does it conduct its investigations? How is its relationship with national judicial systems defined? Which body decides on the renewal of the terms of European prosecutors? Can Greece indeed abolish this relatively new institution by law, despite having played a leading role in its establishment? The scope of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office includes crimes against the financial interests of the EU: from illegal EU subsidies to allegations involving NGOs and corruption of public officials. The head of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and the College of European Prosecutors—composed of one European prosecutor per member state—are based in Luxembourg and sit at the top of the hierarchy, as they set strategy and oversee cases. At the same time, in each member state there are delegated European prosecutors who execute orders to conduct criminal investigations and also participate in the adjudication of related cases before national courts. National European prosecutors are integrated into national justice systems but report directly to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Luxembourg, where they are seconded. Today, according to the EPPO’s 2025 report, 24 member states participate in this newly established institution. Greece joined the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in 2021, and in implementation of the European regulation, Law 4786/2021 was passed by Parliament. The Greek office in Athens began operations on June 1, 2021, and today is staffed by nine delegated European prosecutors working under the supervision of the Greek European prosecutor Nikos Paschalis, who is based in Luxembourg. The Greek European prosecutors in Athens are appellate prosecutors Evgenia Kyvelou, Eleni Siskou, Kalliopi Daggianta, as well as first-instance prosecutors Popi Papandreou, Charikleia Thanou, Dionysis Mouzakis, Antonia Georgiou, Thomaï Emmanouilidou, and Stavroula Dousi. The head of the European prosecutors’ office in Athens is Deputy Prosecutor of the Supreme Court Eleni Karkampouna. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office began operating under the leadership of Romanian Laura Kövesi, who was selected as Chief Prosecutor by the Council of the European Union, in agreement with the European Parliament. It is noteworthy that her candidacy for this top position had initially stalled, as several member states had taken a negative stance, choosing to support the French candidate. The term of Romanian Laura Kövesi as Chief Prosecutor ends in September This did not ultimately happen, as Kövesi—having succeeded in bringing mayors, MPs, and ministers in Romania involved in corruption cases to justice—gained widespread recognition in several European capitals. However, at the end of this coming September, she will step down from the leadership of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, and the baton will pass for six years to 62-year-old German Andreas Ritter. He is a prosecutor described as moderate and an expert in financial crime and cross-border cases. Ritter has been at the European Public Prosecutor’s Office since 2020 as Germany’s delegated European prosecutor and is therefore considered an insider with experience in how it operates. Laura Kövesi will be succeeded by 62-year-old German Andreas Ritter Prosecutor Popi Papandreou was appointed delegated European prosecutor in 2021 and has served in that role ever since. Whether she will continue in the position will be decided by the Supreme Judicial Council for Civil and Criminal Justice, which is expected to convene in May, although the exact date has not yet been set. Prosecutor Popi Papandreou was appointed delegated European prosecutor in 2021 and has served in that role ever since The issue of the duration of the terms of European prosecutors in Greece, however, has a history and dates back to last October, when Kövesi visited Greece and met with the Minister and Deputy Minister of Justice Giorgos Floridis and Ioannis Bougas, respectively, the Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakis, and the Minister of Citizen Protection Michalis Chrysochoidis. After her visit to the Ministry of Justice, the European Chief Prosecutor requested the strengthening of the Greek branch of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office with three additional prosecutors and six administrative staff, while also referring to the need to extend the terms of certain Greek European prosecutors. Subsequently visiting the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court Konstantinos Tzavellas, Kövesi reportedly stated that she intends to renew the terms of certain Greek delegated European prosecutors, expressing the view that she has the authority to grant such extensions. According to the same information, the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court reserved his response on the issue of term extensions, noting that this authority belongs to the Supreme Judicial Council, although no further action was taken at the time. Indeed, one month later, in November, following a proposal by Kövesi, the College of European Prosecutors in Luxembourg unanimously decided to extend by five years the terms of certain delegated European prosecutors, on the grounds that they were handling investigations that had not yet been completed. Kövesi will return to Greece this Wednesday, April 22, to participate in the Delphi Economic Forum and will hold a press conference. The prosecutors whose terms were extended come from France, Belgium, Spain, Austria, Malta, Cyprus, Portugal, Bulgaria, and Greece. Specifically for Greece, among those granted extensions are Papandreou, as well as her colleagues Charikleia Thanou and Dionysis Mouzakis. The terms of the three Greek prosecutors expire at the end of the current judicial year, on June 30, and the Prosecutor’s Office of the Supreme Court, as required by law, has already since last December issued a call for expressions of interest to fill these positions. However, Kövesi’s decision to extend the terms of the three Greek prosecutors raised issues of a dual nature, both constitutional and legal. This is because, firstly, the Constitution assigns exclusive authority over promotions and transfers of judges and prosecutors to the Supreme Judicial Council for Civil and Criminal Justice, which includes, among others, the President of the Supreme Court Anastasia Papadopoulou (as chair) and the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court Konstantinos Tzavellas. Secondly, Law 4786/2021 on the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office states in Article 5 that “the selection of proposed candidates for appointment to the position of European prosecutor is carried out by the Supreme Judicial Council for Civil and Criminal Justice, in accordance with the procedure of the Code of Organization of Courts and Status of Judicial Officers (Law 1756/1988).” Consequently, as senior prosecutorial officials argue, since the implementing law explicitly provides the method for selecting appointments to the position of European prosecutor by the Supreme Judicial Council, by implication the national authorities are competent to decide on the renewal or non-renewal of the terms of Greek European prosecutors. Some even emphasize that the Council cannot be reduced to a body merely ratifying decisions of the leadership of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and must not be deprived of its constitutionally granted decision-making powers. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office is an institution governed by EU provisions of supralegislative force and cannot, as the Union of Judges and Prosecutors states, be abolished by national law. Nevertheless, prosecutorial sources told “THEMA” that, theoretically, Greece could withdraw from the EPPO, provided that a legal provision is passed deciding on such withdrawal. In other words, just as it joined under the EPPO framework, it could withdraw in the same way. However, as the same sources noted, withdrawal would effectively mean opting out of an EU anti-corruption framework, especially at a time when case files involving political figures have already been submitted and investigations are ongoing. Moreover, the same sources rejected the notion that the forwarding of the OPEKEPE case files involving political figures is solely the work of Papandreou, noting that the process is overseen both by Paschalis and Kövesi. “We are among the first nine member states that spearheaded the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office within the framework of enhanced cooperation under the Lisbon Treaty. Withdrawal from the EPPO is not feasible and in practice would imply a negative image for Greece regarding the rule of law and, consequently, a reduction in the funding the country is entitled to, which it would lose if it did not meet rule-of-law requirements,” a competent prosecutorial source emphasized, noting that Athens is obliged to cooperate with specific institutions. “If you think corruption exists only in Greece, that is not true. Corruption exists everywhere. The issue is whether we have the habit of sweeping problems under the carpet or not,” Kövesi had stated last October at a press conference held at the Piraeus Customs Office, and this position is fully confirmed by the data presented in the EPPO’s 2025 annual report. Having jurisdiction to investigate all offenses committed after November 20, 2017, by the end of 2025 the European Public Prosecutor’s Office had 3,602 active cases, with an estimated total damage exceeding €67.27 billion. “In all participating member states, our prosecutors have the same priorities. We focus on complex cross-border financial crime investigations,” Kövesi noted in her introductory remarks, adding that in 2025 the Office processed 6,966 crime reports—6% more than in 2024. According to the same report, in Greece as of December 31, 2025, there were 175 ongoing investigations, with estimated total damages of approximately €2.68 billion. Most of these investigations concern funding for EU agricultural, regional, and urban development programs, as well as recovery and resilience programs. At the same time, for example, in Italy there were around 991 active investigations by the end of 2025, with estimated damages of €28.71 billion. In France there were 121 open cases with estimated damages of €5.94 billion, while in Germany active cases numbered 361, with estimated damages reaching €5.77 billion. Follow en.protothema.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news See all the latest News from Greece and the World, the moment they happen, at en.protothema.gr