In 2020, the Chinese intelligence services turned to Eric Dosoga, the then mayor of the Walloian city of Huy and the political rival of Samuel Cogolati. According to the media, Dosoga had close relations with the Chinese state due to the partnership of the city.
According to reports, Belgian security services monitored the Chinese agent's phone who contacted Dosoga, and At least twice warned a local policy about the risk of interference and espionage. The services later warned Cogolati and the chairman of the French -speaking Socialist Party, Paul Magnette, about the threat.
“Le Soir”, “Knack”, “De Tijd” and the public broadcaster RTBF were the first to inform about the case. Dosogne refused to comment on these reports. Belgian intelligence services also refused to comment.
This is not the first time the Belgian politician was involved in cooperation with the Chinese espionage agency. In December 2023, the far -right politician Frank Creyelman was expelled from the Vlams Belang party after it was revealed that He was involved in influencing discussions on various topicsfrom China suppressing democracy in Hong Kong to the persecution of the Uighurs in Sinciang.
Cogolati – which was placed on the List of Sanctions by Beijing in March 2021 – was a key voice Alibaby's opposing investment in the Logistyczne Center in Liège. He criticized the forced work of Utgurów in China and pressed to limit the use of Huawei devices in 5G Belgian networks.
Earlier, he was a target of cyber attack in connection with his work in an interparliamentary alliance in China (IPAC), a coalitions of critical deputies towards Beijing. Huy, where both cogolati and Dosogne are active in local politics, is One of the largest centers of Tibetan Buddhism in Europewho visited the Dalai Lama several times.
