"Hello Mr Jagland," writes one of Jeffrey Epstein's assistants in an email to the Norwegian politician, spring 2014.
"I will help you with your trip to Palm Beach and on to Jeffrey's Island."
Former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Thorbjørn Jagland's many years of contact with Jeffrey Epstein emerge among the millions of investigative documents released in the United States.
When the above email was sent, Jagland had been in contact with Jeffrey Epstein for at least three years. They wrote to each other privately: "I’ve been to Tirana (Albania), fantastic girls." They discussed when they could meet: "Are you in Paris next week?"
Met most of them
Thorbjørn Jagland was then Secretary General of the Council of Europe and Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which awards the Peace Prize. His contacts with the avidly networking sex offender are now under investigation in Norway on suspicion of gross corruption.
Jagland, 75, is one of Norway's best-known politicians. In his roles, he met most of the world leaders of recent decades. As leader of the Council of Europe, he was given a mediating role when a Russian threat loomed over Europe and after Russia first attacked Ukraine.
Jeffrey Epstein mentioned his friendship with Thorbjørn Jagland to other influential people, in some cases describing him as someone who could be helpful.
"Give him lessons"
"I give him lessons in the ABCs of economics, he gives me lessons in pragmatic politics," Epstein wrote about his relationship with the Norwegian, in an email to Professor Noam Chomsky.
Jagland praised Epstein as a good friend and texted greetings from a trip: "Thinking about you a lot."
It appears that Epstein paid medical bills for Jagland in New York. Jagland borrowed Epstein's apartments in New York and Paris, and had Epstein visit him in Strasbourg. In an email, Jagland appears to ask for help with a mortgage.
Jagland denies having committed any irregularities, taking loans from Epstein, or knowing about his crimes.
Birthday trip
In emails to Epstein in the spring of 2014, Jagland said he was planning a trip for his wife's 60th birthday celebration, adding in parentheses that he "can't just keep it going with young women, as you know."
Epstein's employees emailed back and forth to book tickets for Jagland's family, but the trip appears to have been canceled. The emails and media infer that Jagland - in his role in the Council of Europe - was busy with the flare-up of the Crimean crisis in Ukraine.
Jagland is a Norwegian politician and diplomat. He was born 9 November 1950 and raised outside Drammen, west of Oslo.
He joined the Social Democratic Labour Party (AP) in his early teens and led its youth wing from 1977 to 1981. He climbed the ranks of the parent party and worked closely with party leader, Prime Minister and "mother of the country" Gro Harlem Brundtland.
In 1992, he took over the party leadership from Brundtland and, four years later, when Brundtland left politics, Jagland was Norway's Prime Minister for almost a year.
In 2000, he handed over the leadership of the AP to Jens Stoltenberg. When Stoltenberg became Prime Minister, Jagland became Minister of Foreign Affairs (2000–2001). He was then Speaker of the Storting (2005–2009). He was Vice-Chairman of the Socialist International 1999–2008.
He was elected Secretary General of the Council of Europe in 2009, a position he held for ten years. In the same year, he also became Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
