Norway set to probe Epstein revelations as scandal reverberates around Europe
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein appears with a woman, whose identity has been obscured, in this image.
PHOTO: REUTERS
OSLO – Norway looks set to launch an inquiry into its own Foreign Ministry over links to the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, making it one of several European nations to feel the heat from a scandal that has yet to cause major political repercussions in the US.
The release of an enormous cache of new files last week has revealed a host of new Epstein connections with politicians, royals and the ultra-rich.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s future is looking increasingly uncertain over his decision in 2025 to name Mr Peter Mandelson, who had a close friendship with Epstein, as ambassador to Washington.
Britain’s King Charles’ brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, had already been forced to relinquish his royal title and lavish residence, and pressure is now growing on him to testify in the US.
In Slovakia, Prime Minister Robert Fico’s national security adviser has resigned after e-mails were revealed in which he discussed young women with Epstein.
And former French culture minister Jack Lang is being urged to resign as president of the Arab World Institute.
Norway in Epstein scandal spotlight
But Norway, home of the Nobel Peace Prize and often a fulcrum of international diplomacy, seems to be facing more than its share of fallout.
Public figures, including Crown Princess Mette-Marit and former prime minister and foreign minister Thorbjorn Jagland, are under fresh scrutiny.
So are former foreign minister Boerge Brende, now leader of the World Economic Forum; Ms Mona Juul, ambassador to Jordan and Iraq; and her husband Terje Rod-Larsen.
Mr Jagland is also a former chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee. Ms Juul and Mr Rod-Larsen helped set up the secret channel for contacts between the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Israeli government that led to the 1993 to 1995 Oslo Accords.
All were known to have had ties to Epstein, but the new files have offered far more detail.
A majority of parties in Norway’s Parliament appear ready to support an independent inquiry into the Foreign Ministry, Norwegian media reported.
Norway’s economic crime police unit said on Feb 5 that it was investigating Mr Jagland on suspicion of aggravated corruption. Mr Jagland’s lawyer said his client was confident of demonstrating his innocence and would cooperate with the investigation.
Jagland’s corruption probe
The Foreign Ministry said it would seek to lift the diplomatic immunity Mr Jagland enjoys as former head of the Council of Europe, from 2009 to 2019. The council did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Neither Mr Rod-Larsen nor Ms Juul immediately answered requests for comment sent to his lawyer and the ministry, which has suspended Ms Juul while she addresses an internal probe.
Mr Brende has said he was unaware of Epstein’s past and criminal activities before first meeting him in 2018, and that he regrets not having investigated him more thoroughly.
The files published by the US Justice Department showed extensive e-mail correspondence between Epstein and the Norwegian Crown Princess, even after he was found guilty of child sex crimes in 2008. Crown Princess Mette-Marit has since apologised.
Norway's royal family is already dealing with several challenges. Marius Borg Hoiby, Crown Princess Marit’s son from a relationship predating her marriage to Crown Prince Haakon, is currently on trial for rape and domestic violence. REUTERS
