Brussels: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban claimed on Friday that the European Union is "drowning in corruption," as an investigation into suspected fraud involving EU-funded training for junior diplomats continues.

According to Anadolu Agency, Orban stated, "The EU is drowning in corruption. Commissioners face serious charges, the Commission and the Parliament are engulfed in scandal, yet Brussels still claims the moral high ground," in a post on US social media company X. His statement followed the detention of former EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, a senior staff member of the College of Europe in Bruges, and a senior European Commission official by the Belgian Federal Judicial Police. The detention was at the request of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO).

The EPPO is investigating whether confidential selection criteria for the EU Diplomatic Academy, a nine-month training program for junior diplomats awarded to the College of Europe in 2021-2022, were improperly shared before the tender was officially published. Orban further criticized, "Corruption in Ukraine should be called out by the EU, but once again it's the same old story: Brussels and Kyiv shielding each other instead of confronting the truth."

The statement also comes in the wake of Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies uncovering a large-scale corruption scheme in the energy sector, involving at least $100 million, particularly connected to the state-owned nuclear energy provider Energoatom. This scandal led to high-profile resignations, including the energy minister and the chief of staff to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. A crackdown on corruption is deemed crucial for Ukraine as it seeks to advance its application to join the EU, following the formal opening of accession negotiations with Kyiv in June 2024.