The European Union has confirmed that it is handing over $3.5 million to George Soros’ Open Society Foundation.
Věra Jourová, the vice president of the European Commission, has confirmed that it is providing over $3.5 million in funding to the Open Society Foundation in order to aid its campaign efforts.
Started by Hungarian billionaire George Soros — himself infamous for breaking the Bank of England by shorting sterling as a currency speculator in 1992, nevermind his subsequent massive political lobbying efforts — the NGO has repeatedly been accused of meddling in the affairs of various EU nations, with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán previously denouncing the leftist philanthropist as being “one of the most corrupt people in the world“.
Despite the reputation of its founder, the EU has confirmed that it is in active cooperation with the Open Society Foundation, which is set to receive over €3.3 million (~$3.53 million) in grants from the bloc for the operation of two projects falling under the so-called “Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme”. The handover of taxpayers’ cash by the EU is remarkable given how the Open Society Foundation already has such incredibly deep pockets, thanks to its billionaire founder.
As part of the projects, the Open Society Foundation is to “raise awareness on rights and values through support to civil society organisations”, as well as promote “EU values” in Bulgaria, Czechia, Slovakia, and Hungary.
The two projects are said to have begun on the first of January this year, and will both last for a total of 36 months.
Hungarian Prime Minister: ‘Soros Is One of the Most Corrupt People in the World’ https://t.co/H8XbYGRHGt
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) November 21, 2020
While the funding was announced in a then little-heeded written answer from the European Union last month, Romanian Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Cristian Terhes is the latest political figure to speak out against the cash. He told Breitbart London on Monday the EU’s continued decision to hand funds to “human rights destroyers” is proof that the bloc needs reform.
“Soros Open Europe Foundation frequently meets and lobbies the European Commission for the promotion of anti-nation, anti-family, anti-life, anti-fundamental rights policies across EU,” the Christian Democratic National Peasants’ Party representative said.
“The fact that his organisation got three million euros out of taxpayers’ money from his eurocrat puppets is another confirmation why the EU needs a deep reform; where the states will take back decision-making powers from these unelected and accountable bureaucrats,” he continued, adding that power needs to be “brought back to the people”, and not left to the likes of big money lobbyists he identifies as being characterised by billionaires like George Soros or Bill Gates.
Jorge Buxadé — a senior figure within Spain’s populist VOX party — also denounced the decision, taking to social media last month to lash out at the EU’s handing over of funds.
“Globalism and destruction of nations in its purest form, financed with your money,” he wrote in response to the Open Society Foundation being funded by the EU.
The Spaniard also accused the EU of hypocrisy in deciding to fund the Soros-backed organisation, describing the NGO as aiding the illegal activities of Catalonian independence groups, something he compared to alleged Russian election meddling which the EU has been consistently keen to denounce.
The Open Society Foundation has in the past denied playing “any role, financial or otherwise, in supporting the Catalonian independence movement”.
Buxadé is far from the only politician with a bone to pick with Soros, with many others across Europe having in the past expressed their displeasure at the apparent meddling of the billionaire and the organisations linked to him.
“George Soros is one of the most corrupt people in the world; he has plenty of politicians in his pocket who now want to blackmail Hungary and Poland for access to EU funds,” Hungarians Prime Minister said back in 2020 regarding the left-wing philanthropist.
The accusations of corruption run both ways between the two men. Soros for his part said of the Hungarian Prime Minister — a particular target for his scorn, perhaps in part because Soros is a born Hungarian and it may be the European country he has least influence in — that: “Orbán has constructed in Hungary an elaborate kleptocratic system to rob the country blind… The amount by which he has enriched his family and friends is difficult to estimate but many of them have become exceedingly wealthy.”