Huawei is being boxed out of Brussels lobbying

BRUSSELS — The European Union’s lobbying scene is rushing to review its ties with Chinese tech company Huawei in the wake of a corruption scandal. 

European technology association DigitalEurope on Thursday suspended Huawei from its work after Belgian prosecutors last week launched an investigation into “active corruption” at the European Parliament benefitting the Chinese tech giant. The powerful industry group BusinessEurope also removed Huawei from its list of partner companies.

Other EU lobby groups and think tanks that have Huawei as a member or received contributions from the company are considering steps too, they told POLITICO.

The European Parliament and European Commission already blacklisted Huawei lobbyists last week, shutting off their access to EU premises, and commissioner cabinets and officials working at the EU executive’s directorates general were instructed “to immediately suspend contacts and meetings” with Huawei “until further notice.”

It’s a sign of how Huawei — which is among the top spenders of lobbying money in Brussels according to the EU’s transparency register — is suffering major blows after Belgian police raided its main lobbying office in Brussels as part of a larger investigation into corruption, criminal organization and money laundering at the European Parliament. 

DigitalEurope is one of Brussels’ most powerful technology lobbying voices. It gathers tech companies and national industry associations to influence European Union decision making.

The lobby group said in a statement it was aware of the “serious allegations” against Huawei. “We take ethical business conduct and compliance with the law very seriously. As a precautionary measure, Huawei’s membership has been suspended until further notice,” the statement read. 

BusinessEurope is a lobbying heavyweight in Brussels, with a membership composed of national trade associations and representing the interests of industrial heavyweights across all sectors. It has a group of “partner companies” that includes the world’s largest companies. The Internet Archive search tool showed Huawei was still listed as a partner on March 1 but had been removed by March 18, days after the corruption scandal broke.

Huawei is also a member of, or has contributed to, several other lobby groups, trade associations and think tanks, according to the EU’s transparency register that lists declarations from organizations looking to lobby the EU’s work.

Those groups and associations are now all closely monitoring how the case unfolds or gearing up to take action. 

The European Internet Forum, a non-profit led by European Parliament members, lists Huawei as a business member. Communications Manager Eusebiu Croitoru said the organization has scheduled a discussion about the investigation and “potential implications for Huawei’s membership,” which will take place April 9.

The financial and ethical committee of the European Cyber Security Organization (ECSO) will “soon analyze the situation and possible next steps.”

Think tank Bruegel said it is “closely monitoring the situation.” And the Centre on Regulation in Europe (CERRE) has kept the situation “under close review.”

Several of the lobby groups or think tanks contacted by POLITICO said Huawei’s input to their organization or involvement in policy activities was small. 

Huawei’s access to sensitive working groups at DigitalEurope was already limited following the security concerns raised over the Chinese tech giant in past years.

The company’s contribution to CERRE was “clearly below” 10 percent of the think tank’s budget, it said. 

Telecoms lobby group ECTA said that Huawei paid a discounted membership fee and assessed the involvement of Huawei in its activities as “limited,” but added it is “closely monitoring the situation.” 

ECSO also said that Huawei had “limited rights” as an associate member.

Eurelectric said Huawei is a “business associate,” which means the company is not involved in any policy work, but it added that it is following the reports “closely.”

Elisa Braun and Mathieu Pollet contributed reporting.