Luxembourgian Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker dismissed allegations on September 3 that his former finance minister, Jeannot Krecke, took part in a cigarette trafficking scam that was used to finance Iran’s nuclear programme.
Le Quotidien explains that “Nuqudy, which claims to be a Middle Eastern economic news website,” alleges that Krecke and a senior official in his ministry “covered up and profited from cigarette trafficking to Iran.” The trade served to finance Iranian companies in Europe “whose goal was to acquire technologies and components for Tehran’s military nuclear programme.”
Having noted that it is impossible to identify the publisher of Nuqudy, the Luxembourg daily adds that the website —
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… presents the Grand-Duchy as a country ruled by corruption and nepotism.
Jean-Claude Juncker has described the claim as defamatory.
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