U.S. lawmaker: Epstein trained a Gulf prince and served as an adviser to Ehud Barak
Prominent Democratic lawmaker Jimmy Raskin has opened an extensive investigation into the international relations network that Jeffrey Epstein spun before his death, amid suspicions that he acted as an unregistered foreign agent for governments in the Middle East and Israel with the aim of influencing U.S. policy and access to decision-making circles in the White House, official documents and leaked correspondence said.
According to Axios, Raskin sent an official letter to the Justice and State Departments demanding the disclosure of unredacted records related to Epstein's international communications, warning that these activities have constituted a serious national security breach.
The documents allege that Epstein presented himself in 2016 as an envoy and financial adviser to Saudi Arabia, after a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, where he offered to "represent the interests of the kingdom" and requested permanent residency in exchange for overseeing part of the investments.
The correspondence reveals that he played a guiding role in preparing the Emir of Kuwait for an official visit to Washington in 2017, writing in one of his letters that he asked the Emir directly about the "concrete things" he wanted to achieve from the United States.
Raskin Demands Epstein's Communications Records With 19 Countries
The files confirm the existence of an extended relationship between Epstein and former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, which included financial, advisory, and political coordination, to his assistance in drafting an opinion piece on the Syrian file published in 2013, and arranging contacts with prominent American figures before Barak's attempt to return to political life in 2019, stressing that Epstein served as Barak' s mentor in American-Russian-Middle Eastern diplomacy.
The documents included letters Epstein wrote in 2018 to Russian officials, including one in which he praised Russia's former U.N. envoy Vitaly Churkin, saying he "understood the ideal way to deal with Trump" after discussions between them.
Raskin asked the Trump administration and security agencies to provide all records related to Epstein's communications with 19 countries before Aug. 3, 2026, stressing that Epstein's boasting of having "pressure and blackmail cards" against Trump raises serious concerns about the extent of the hacking that the U.S. system may have been subjected to.
Kuwait refuses to amplify personal ties
Kuwaiti diplomatic sources in charge clarified the context of the allegations related to the visit of the late Emir (Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah) to Washington in September 2017, stressing that the visit and meeting he had with President Donald Trump were fully prepared and coordinated through the official diplomatic and sovereign channels approved, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Kuwaiti Embassy in Washington and the Amiri Diwan, and based on joint strategic files related to regional security and counter-terrorism.
The sources stressed the refusal to exaggerate personal relationships or give any credibility to Epstein's attempts to claim influence or direct him to visit in his leaked private messages, considering that these messages reflect his well-known style of bragging, exaggerating and marketing himself as a "backstage man" in front of his agents.
The sources confirmed that the State of Kuwait and its institutions do not base their political decisions or meetings on unofficial intermediaries or suspicious consulting firms.
Saudi Arabia adheres to strict diplomatic silence
Riyadh has chosen to maintain strict diplomatic silence without issuing any official comment on the documents on which Raskin relied.
Observers close to official circles considered that the kingdom is dealing with these leaks as part of political bidding within Congress, and that in 2016 Epstein was acting as an international financial figure who participated in public meetings with officials and heads of state, without those meetings bearing any official character or influence on Saudi politics.
The readings confirm that Riyadh follows a consistent approach of not commenting on personal messages of convicted or deceased individuals, especially when used in the context of U.S. partisan conflict.
Gulf analysts agree that the reopening of Epstein's file at this time aims to increase political pressure on the Trump administration and link it to his historical network of relations, before the expiration of the deadline given by Raskin to the Justice Department on August 3.
Diplomats believe that these moves do not have a direct impact on Gulf-American relations, as much as they reflect the nature of internal tensions in Washington and the attempt to employ old files in new political battles.