Pro-Russian member of EU parliament invites other lawmakers to St Petersburg

Editor's note: This article was updated to include comments from MEP Rihards Kols and the response of MEP Fernand Kartheiser.

A pro-Russian member of the European Parliament (MEP), Fernand Kartheiser, sent an email to his colleagues on April 30 inviting them to an in-person meeting with Russian politicians in St. Petersburg.

The invite, seen by the Kyiv Independent, mentions a "successful and constructive meeting in Istanbul" on April 17, after which he hopes other MEPs will join him and members of the State Duma, the Russian parliament's lower house, on the margins of the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.

Kartheiser, a Luxembourgish politician, said on Facebook that he and  "other MEPs" met with the head of the Russian Duma's International Affairs Committee, Leonid Slutsky, and other Russian politicians in Istanbul. However, he did not elaborate on which other MEPs joined him.

Nor is Kartheiser's engagement with the Russian authorities new. He met with officials from Russia's EU embassy on March 17, and with members of the Duma on February 26.

The MEP has also admitted that in the 1980s he was embroiled in espionage with both the Soviet secret service and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

This engagement has left Kartheiser mostly out in the cold with his colleagues in the European Parliament.

Liberal MEP Petras Austrevicius described Kartheiser's invite to the Kyiv Independent as "a deplorable act of mediation to invite people to an event organized by an aggressor state," and cited it as "an example of Europe's betrayal" of Ukraine.

The parliament's liberal and social-democratic groupings have raised formal objections to Kartheiser's pro-Russian stance. In June 2025, he was expelled from the right-wing ECR (European Conservatives and Reformists) Group following a May trip to meet Russian politicians and government officials.

ECR MEP Rihards Kols described that trip as "crossing a red line."

Kartheiser now sits alone in the parliament as a non-aligned member.

When asked for comment, a spokesperson for the European Parliament said that they "do not comment on individual cases."

However, they noted that the institution has had no cooperation with the Duma since 2014 and that those members who do so "are acting in their sole capacity."

They also mentioned that MEPs are bound by a code of conduct that "specifies that MEPs shall not accept or receive any direct or indirect benefit or other reward, including in cash or in kind, in exchange for specific behavior in the scope of their parliamentary work, and shall consciously seek to avoid any situation which might imply bribery, corruption, or undue influence."

Kartheiser's email to MEPs mentioned that "assistance with finding suitable accommodation can be provided."

When asked to comment on how the trip will be funded and who else might attend, Kartheiser told the Kyiv Independent on May 3 that "MEPs are expected to pay themselves for their accommodation," and that the help provided by Russian politicians would be "logistical" only.

He also declined to comment on other MEPs who may attend.

Rihards Kols was clear that "any MEP who travels to Russia must declare that visit fully and transparently," adding that Parliament resources, staff time, or institutional credentials must not be used.

Kols told the Kyiv Independent on May 1 that those MEPs who do not disclose their ties to Russia "should not retain access to closed, in camera sessions," recalling a recent push for the Parliament to bring in exactly such measures.

For any MEPs wishing to make the trip, EU airspace is closed for flights to and from Russia, so they will first have to transfer via a third country, with Turkey being the nearest such option.