"EU Commission Removes Incendiary Communication: Messages between Commission President von der Leyen and Pfizer CEO Disappear"
The ongoing "Pfizergate" scandal has been making headlines in European politics, centering on the refusal of the European Commission to disclose text messages exchanged during 2021 vaccine negotiations with Pfizer. These secret messages, valued at €35 billion, were negotiated via SMS without tenders or public transparency.
The controversy began in May 2021, when journalist Alexander Fanta first requested access to the text messages. However, the Commission's cabinet chief, Bjoern Seibert, decided not to store the SMS in a way that would allow public access. This decision was made shortly after Fanta's request.
The missing text messages, which have been missing since at least July 2023, are at the heart of the "Pfizergate" scandal. Older devices have been deleted and recycled, making it impossible to restore the messages. The Commission has refused to release the SMS, a decision that has been reported by The New York Times, which has sought access to the SMS since 2022 and even sued the Commission for its refusal.
The SMS were exchanged during early 2021 negotiations for the EU's largest vaccine contract. Critics, including judges from the European Court, see the blocking of these SMS as a violation of the EU agency's transparency obligations. In their May 2025 ruling, the judges emphasized that the Commission must provide credible explanations for the unretrievable documents.
The scandal revolves around deleted SMS messages between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla. Von der Leyen's phone has been replaced multiple times without data transfer, complicating efforts to retrieve the missing messages.
The refusal to release the texts has raised issues of governance and potential abuse of power within EU institutions. Politically, the scandal has exposed tensions between calls for transparency and the Commission's defense against what it alleges are destabilizing misinformation campaigns.
Von der Leyen has publicly defended herself, calling accusations “simply a lie” and dismissing the scandal as conspiracy theories promoted by pro-Russian and anti-EU forces. However, questions remain about the contract's pricing, procurement procedures, and the large amount of unused vaccine doses still held in EU warehouses, complicating renegotiation efforts.
Legally, the court ruling highlights the Commission's obligation to comply with transparency laws and the General Court’s orders. The Commission did not appeal the ruling but developed a new legal justification to defend its renewed refusal. Despite a no-confidence vote in the European Parliament triggered by allegations of abuse of power and lack of democratic mandate, von der Leyen survived the vote.
The wider implications of "Pfizergate" affect trust in EU governance, vaccine contract procurement process oversight, and institutional accountability. Key details about the negotiation process and financial conditions have still not been disclosed, leaving the public in the dark about one of the most significant vaccine deals in EU history. If The New York Times decides to sue again, the process would drag on for years, prolonging the uncertainty and fueling the ongoing debate.
- Science and health-and-wellness communities have expressed concern about the lack of transparency surrounding the Pfizergate scandal, given the importance of understanding the negotiation process for EU's largest vaccine contract.
- The ongoing legal battle over the withheld SMS between the European Commission and Pfizer, initially requested by journalist Alexander Fanta in 2021, has raised questions not only in politics but also in general-news circles about governance and the use of a kind of secret communications in high-stakes negotiations.
