New York Times sues EU over von der Leyen’s Pfizer texts

The newspaper claims that the Commission faces a legal obligation to release the messages

The New York Times is taking the European Commission to court over the executive institution’s failure to release text messages between its president Ursula von der Leyen and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.

The newspaper will face off against EU lawyers in the bloc’s highest court, arguing that the Commission faces a legal obligation to release the messages, which could contain information on the bloc’s deals to purchase billions of euros worth of COVID-19 doses.

The case was lodged on January 25 and published on the European Court of Justice’s public register on Monday, but no detailed information is yet available online. Two people familiar with the matter confirmed the details of the case to POLITICO.

The New York Times declined to comment on the case. A statement from the publication stated: “The Times files many freedom of information requests and maintains an active docket. We can’t comment at this time on the subject of this lawsuit.”

The European Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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