Kristof Clerix

Speaker
Dutch
English
Photo of Kristof Clerix

Who is Kristof Clerix?

Kristof works as an investigative journalist for Knack. He has been monitoring the shady world of the intelligence services for the past fifteen years. He has published two books about the activities of foreign spies in Belgium. National and international media regularly call on him for his views on espionage affairs.

Kristof is one of the three Belgian members of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which is a cooperative of over 190 investigative journalists from 65 countries. ICIJ became world famous because of LuxLeaks and SwissLeaks, which represent two of the most remarkable pieces of journalism in recent years. He thus played a role in the publication of Swissleaks and Luxleaks, and the Panama Papers in 2016, which highlighted people and companies that exploited exotic tax havens. In 2015, the LuxLeaks investigation was awarded the prestigious Belfius Persprijs. As a result, Clerix and his colleagues were invited to the Belgian and European parliaments to testify on the LuxLeaks affair. He has given countless lectures about espionage in the past, including at a VUB study day about the intelligence services, which was also attended by the FBI and State Security.

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    From LuxLeaks to Paradise Papers: how the Belgian treasury missed out on millions

    Kristof uses his lecture to provide an overview of all the revelations concerning LuxLeaks, SwissLeaks, the Panama Papers and the Paradise Papers. He also offers a unique insight into how this exciting international investigation took place. But also into its impact: did the investigation actually make a difference?

    If companies make a profit of over 150 million euros, and only pay a few thousand euros in tax… It was all possible thanks to a secret deal with the tax authority in Luxembourg. Banks and lawyers were more than willing to lend a helping hand. However, thanks to the detective work of investigative journalists, the secrecy behind shady financial constructions was shattered for good. The revelations were met with indignation all across the globe.

    Belgium: target Brussels. Foreign secret services in Belgium

    During his lecture, Kristof provides a detailed insight into how - after the Cold War - Belgium became a popular destination for secret agents, who were able to do their work unhindered under the guise of diplomacy or lobbying work. Because, even though our country is small, Belgium appears to be a magnet for foreign secret services. The presence of EU institutions and NATO means a lot of espionage takes place in our country.

    Terrorists that reside in Belgium are also a major attraction for the ‘James Bond’ types of the intelligence world. So it's no surprise that foreign intelligence services are also fighting the War On Terror here in Belgium. They conceal themselves in the streets of Brussels, tap telephone conversations and install listening devices.

    Target Brussels

    In various Eastern European countries, secret service archives from the Cold War era have now been made public. Kristof spent many months delving into archives in the Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria and Germany, looking for information about espionage in Belgium. In June 2011, he published the results of this revealing investigation in Knack Wereldtijdschrift.

    Thousands of documents showed that, since the 70s, Brussels has been a playground for (double) agents from East and West. Journalists were closely monitored, as were politicians such as the Mayor of Brussels, Freddy Thielemans. Kristof shares these stories about the mysterious world of the secret services.

Kristof Clerix is a very good speaker and has a lot of knowledge in this field. Thank you!

An De Hert

Vormingsplus region Mechelen

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Everything went very well. Kristof Clerix is a fantastic speaker. There was a lot of praise.

Lieven De Clercq

Verzekeringskring der Vlaanderen

Very interesting and enthusiastic speaker, who is very knowledgeable about this subject - everyone was extremely pleased.

Bruggeman Ann

NEOS board member

This lecture met all our expectations. Kristof is a very good speaker! All attending members were very enthusiastic about the lecture!

Jan Hollebeke

Fifty One Club Ieper

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Kristof Clerix had us on the edge of our seats with his fascinating lecture. We were very surprised to get our hands on former TOP SECRET documents from the CIA in New York. I would definitely recommend him to everyone!

Kristof Peeters