Europe Asia News

Heli Suominen, a department head at the Council of Europe, told NRK: “We have no indication that this was related to any official work by Epstein for the Council of Europe, and there is no trace of these private meetings in Jagland’s official diary at the time.”

Suominen said the Council of Europe had reviewed its archives and conducted administrative investigations before reports emerged last weekend about Jagland’s contact with Epstein.

The Council of Europe’s investigations also show that Jagland stayed privately during an official visit to New York in 2018, a visit that media reports suggest may have been linked to Epstein.

It was also established that he stayed privately in Paris twice, in 2015 and 2018, which media have associated with Epstein. In a letter to NRK, Suominen stated that no documents were found indicating that Jagland visited Epstein’s properties in an official capacity.

Suominen emphasized that Jagland had been thoroughly briefed on the organization’s internal regulations, particularly regarding official hospitality and the acceptance of gifts.

Meanwhile, according to RIA Novosti, sex offender Jeffrey Epstein also paid travel receipts and personalized business-class airline tickets for several flights taken by Jagland and his family from Europe to Epstein Island, paying $7,902 for the tickets.

Jagland announced that he would issue a statement on the matter at a later time.

Jagland served as Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 2009 to 2019. Prior to that, he was Prime Minister of Norway from 1996 to 1997.