Norway’s ministers questioned in parliament over Epstein ties

Norway’s parliament began hearings on Wednesday of current and former ministers to examine practices in the diplomatic service, following revelations about ties between late US convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and senior Norwegian officials.

The hearings come against the background of the foreign ministry’s payment of more than 130 million kroner to the International Peace Institute (IPI) between 1997 and 2018, a think tank headed by Norwegian diplomat Terje Rod-Larsen from 2005 to 2020.

The Epstein files have shed light on ties between the US financier and Rod-Larsen and his diplomat wife Mona Juul, the architects of the 1993 Oslo Accords who are now under investigation in Norway – she for “aggravated corruption” and he for “complicity in aggravated corruption”.

The couple denies any wrongdoing.

In total, 11 officials who have held the positions of foreign minister or development aid minister since 2005, including current Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, will speak before the Storting’s standing committee on scrutiny and constitutional affairs.

In addition to Rod-Larsen and Juul, the Epstein documents have highlighted ties between the sex offender, who died in prison in 2019, and Thorbjorn Jagland, a former prime minister, foreign minister, secretary general of the Council of Europe and chair of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee.

Epstein also had ties with former foreign minister Borge Brende.

Jagland is also under investigation on suspicion of “aggravated corruption”, but is not among the officials summoned by parliament, in part because he was foreign minister before 2005.

Brende, who resigned in February as president of the World Economic Forum, is due to be heard on Wednesday.

“The Epstein documents raise serious questions about abuse of office, a culture of accountability failures and poor management of development aid funds,” said Jonas Andersen Sayed, a member of the oversight committee.

“The issue concerns public trust in the entire system. It is essential that all the facts are brought to light, that accountability is established, and that the necessary reforms are implemented,” he said.

The hearings themselves will not result in any sanctions.

Parliament has also set up an independent inquiry tasked with a much broader examination of the case, which is due to submit its final report by January 31, 2028.