LONDON — For Keir Starmer, the crises and climbdowns just keep getting faster. The British prime minister, facing questions about his judgment in appointing Peter Mandelson as U.K. ambassador to Washington despite his Jeffrey Epstein links, pledged on Wednesday to publish a cache of emails and texts between the ex-Labour peer and his top team — on his own terms. But hours later he was forced to toughen up independent scrutiny of this document release in the face of a revolt by his own MPs, who are horrified by the scandal and fear opposition accusations of a cover-up will stick. Taken alone, this technical U-turn will not enter any history books. But the last-minute drama around it puts the already weak Labour leader in further peril. Nervous MPs in his governing party, now awaiting the document dump with deep unease, are rounding with renewed ferocity on the PM and his chief of staff Morgan McSweeney. POLITICO spoke to 20 Labour MPs and current and former officials for this piece. “We need a head,” said one moderate Labour MP who entered parliament in 2024 and was, like others quoted, granted anonymity to speak frankly. “Someone has to pay the price for this failure,” a second, usually loyal, MP from the 2024 intake said, adding they “wouldn’t care” who exactly it was. In the minds of many of Labour’s own MPs and officials, the Mandelson affair has further weakened Starmer and McSweeney, who pushed for the appointment of his close ally and friend as ambassador in late 2024. After rows over a succession of tax and policy U-turns, some believe the Mandelson crisis exemplifies their criticisms of Starmer’s leadership — paying too little attention to a potential problem until it blows up into a full-blown scandal. “I love Morgan, but Keir has to sack him and he should have sacked him a long time ago,” said one Labour official who has long been loyal to the leadership. “The problem is, who does Keir replace him with?” TAINTED BY MANDELSON Starmer defended McSweeney to the hilt on Wednesday. “Morgan McSweeney is an essential part of my team,” he told MPs. “He helped me change the Labour Party and win an election. Of course I have confidence in him,” the PM said. Some MPs also rallied around Starmer, blaming an overexcited media narrative and MPs on edge for the next scandal. “This feels like a Westminster story at the moment rather than something terminal for the PM in the eyes of the public,” said a third Labour MP elected in 2024. But the mood in large parts of the party on Wednesday night was bleak. The latest round of bloodletting began in earnest on Monday, when emails released as part of the Epstein files appeared to show Mandelson leaking government financial discussions in the wake of the 2008 banking crash. Police are now investigating allegations of misconduct in public office. Mandelson didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the police investigation Tuesday evening. He has previously said he was wrong to have continued his association with Epstein and apologized “unequivocally” to Epstein’s victims. Starmer, like the rest of the British state and public, insists he did not know about the bombshell emails, and would never have appointed Mandelson if he did. Having already sacked Mandelson in September he is now obliterating his reputation, saying on Wednesday that Mandelson “lied repeatedly” during his appointment as ambassador.  Yet it was well known that Mandelson came with baggage. Starmer knew the former Labour Cabinet minister had been repeatedly sacked in scandal — and confirmed at the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions session on Wednesday that he had known Mandelson was friends with Epstein. “That was the moment,” said a fourth, moderate Labour MP. “The mood was awful. I had opposition MPs saying to me that they had not seen one that bad in decades.” Several Labour MPs and officials who spoke to POLITICO voiced fears that revealing details of the vetting process will paint Starmer and his chief of staff as too incurious about the wider situation. Mandelson had worked closely with McSweeney since the late 2010s and gave Labour informal advice in the run-up to its 2024 election landslide. One former No. 10 official said Mandelson was not on the list of potential ambassadors until McSweeney took over as chief of staff in October 2024, claiming: “Morgan didn’t do anything without speaking to Peter.” “Once the timeline — and the degree to which searching questions were asked — become clear, I think Morgan might be in trouble,” one U.K. government official added. Mandelson went through at least three layers of checks, a second U.K. government official said. Before his role was announced, the Cabinet Office carried out due diligence. Afterward, he was subjected to full deep security vetting. The third layer — and potentially the most problematic for Starmer and McSweeney — was a letter to Mandelson before his appointment from the chief of staff on the PM’s behalf. It asked three questions: why he continued contact with Epstein after his conviction, why he was reported to have stayed in one of Epstein’s home when the financier was in prison, and whether he was associated with a charity founded by Epstein’s associate Ghislaine Maxwell. A No. 10 official said reports that linked Mandelson to Epstein, including after he was first convicted, had been looked into as part of the appointment process. “Peter Mandelson lied to the Prime Minister, hid information that has since come to light and presented Epstein as someone he barely knew,” the No. 10 official added. HURRY UP AND WAIT Some Labour MPs — spooked by consistent polls putting Labour behind Nigel Farage’s populist Reform UK — are so angry that they want to see regime change immediately. For many on Labour’s left or “soft left” flank this was simply a chance to push their campaign against No. 10. One former minister, already hostile to the leadership, said it felt like the worst part of Starmer’s premiership and McSweeney should go now. Left-wing former Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn, long cast out of the party over comments on antisemitism, went on Sky News to say Starmer may even be challenged before local elections, which will be held across the U.K. in May. Others were new converts to immediate action. A fifth Labour MP, a moderate who entered parliament in 2024, also said McSweeney should go now. They lamented the “blind spot for many in the leadership” who allowed Mandelson to become ambassador. It has left some MPs angry and dejected. One, Sarah Owen, made an impassioned intervention in Wednesday’s debate: “Don’t we need to put the victims at the heart of this, not just ourselves?” But they will have to wait if they want the facts behind the case to become clear. MPs agreed on Wednesday night to release a series of documents concerning the diligence and vetting around Mandelson’s appointment, as well as communications he had with McSweeney, ministers, civil servants and special advisers in the six months before his appointment. Starmer had intended to block the release of any documents that would prejudice U.K. national security or international relations. But No. 10 staged a late climbdown after Angela Rayner — a key figure among MPs on Labour’s “soft left” who resigned as deputy prime minister amid a housing scandal in September — called for parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) to have a role. Officials scrambled to compile a new amendment that would give the ISC the final say on what is blocked. It will likely take days or weeks for the government to work through what needs to be released, and far longer for the ISC to work through the most contentious documents after that. The Met Police also released a statement on Wednesday night warning the release of specific documents “could undermine” its current investigation into Mandelson’s alleged misconduct in public office. The releases — which could include Mandelson’s private messages to friends in the Cabinet, such as Health Secretary Wes Streeting — will provide easy fodder to a British media gripped by the stories of Epstein’s friendships with Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew. But most MPs and officials who spoke to POLITICO agreed that No. 10 and McSweeney stand to lose the most. A second former No. 10 official said: “Lots of people are nice to creepy people in politics. But when it comes down to the brass tacks of who knew what or did what when they made the appointment — that’s the chopping block stuff.” A sixth Labour MP, on the left of the party, said even frontbenchers were “questioning why they should jeopardise their own positions to protect one individual [McSweeney].” But the question of “when” remains a key one.  One Labour figure loyal to Starmer’s No. 10 admitted there will be pressure for McSweeney to go now, but insisted anyone with an ounce of political sense would delay any move against him until after local elections in May — so that he could absorb the blame for any losses and protect the PM. Even a staunch ally of McSweeney — who has been at Starmer’s side since he first ran to be Labour leader — said they had no idea if he will survive. But a seventh Labour MP, elected in 2024, thinks questions over McSweeney’s future are a red herring. “It’s ultimately about the PM’s judgement,” they said. The fourth Labour MP quoted above added: “If one of them goes, the other one has to go too.” Esther Webber contributed reporting.

The face of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was erased from a church fresco in Rome following a controversy over the artwork earlier this week. The affair began with painter Bruno Valentinetti’s restoration of a fresco at Rome’s Basilica of San Lorenzo in Lucina, which he first painted in the early 2000s. One of the figures in the restored fresco, it was noticed, bore an uncanny resemblance to Meloni. The likeness sparked outrage among opposition parties, prompting the Ministry of Culture and the Diocese of Rome to open an inquiry. According to a Wednesday report in La Repubblica, a daily paper, the painter said he had since painted over the face on Tuesday night. “That’s what the Vatican wanted,” Valentinetti told Italian media. “Yes, it is the prime minister’s face,” he confessed, “but based on the previous painting.” POLITICO reached out to the Vatican for comment but did not receive an answer ahead of publication. The culture ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that following the erasure of the face, Rome’s special superintendent had informed the rector of the basilica of the applicable rules. “Any restoration work requires an authorization request to the Religious Buildings Fund of the Interior Ministry, which owns the property, as well as to the Vicariate and the Special Superintendency of Rome, accompanied by a sketch of the image,” the statement said. While Meloni had previously laughed off the issue, noting “I definitely don’t look like an angel,” it remained unclear on Wednesday how Italy’s right-wing leader felt about being so unceremoniously erased. POLITICO contacted Meloni’s office as well as the rector of the basilica for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

ATHENS — Greece’s authorities on Wednesday launched an internal investigation into a deadly collision between a coast guard patrol vessel and a speedboat carrying migrants off the island of Chios. According to a statement by the coast guard, the collision occurred after the speedboat, which had its navigation lights off, ignored signals from the patrol vessel and changed course. The boat capsized due to the force of the impact, sending its passengers into the sea. At least 15 migrants were killed while 24 were rescued. A search and rescue operation is ongoing, and it is still unclear how many were on board. Two coast guard officers were also slightly injured. A prosecutor ordered the arrest of a Moroccan national who was piloting the speedboat. The coast guard said a camera installed on its vessel was not active at the time of the crash. An official from Frontex, the EU’s coastguard agency, said the agency wasn’t involved in the operation. Frontex has offered a plane to support the search and rescue but has not yet been asked by Greek authorities to deploy it. Greece has repeatedly been condemned by the European Court of Human Rights, Frontex and the EU Commission for pushbacks of migrant vessels and for improper investigations by its coast guard. In the notorious case of the Pylos shipwreck, among the deadliest in modern Mediterranean history, an independent investigation by the Greek Ombudsman recommended that disciplinary charges be filed against coast guard officers for alleged dereliction of duty. Migration Minister Thanos Plevris relayed the coast guard’s version of events and told the parliament that the tragedy underscores the fight Greece must wage against “killer smugglers.” Dimitris Mantzos, spokesperson of the Pasok main opposition party, said: “The truth must be revealed institutionally, without ideological bias or anti-immigration rhetoric.”

PARIS — Prosecutors in Paris opened an investigation Wednesday into allegations that Chinese citizens had sought to capture sensitive French government and military data using Starlink. “Four people were brought before the investigating judge for indictment, with two of them being remanded in custody,” the public prosecutor’s office said in a statement. Investigators are looking into possible acts of “delivering information to a foreign power or a company or organization under foreign control, or to their agents, in a manner likely to harm the fundamental interests of [France],” the statement added — a crime that can lead to up to 15 years in prison. The prosecutor’s office said police had been notified last week that the arrested pair were suspected of conducting satellite interception operations from an AirBnB they had rented in the Gironde region, near the city of Bordeaux, after neighbors noticed that “a satellite dish approximately two meters in diameter” had been installed and local residents were experiencing internet outages. “The device installed was used to illegally intercept satellite downlinks, including exchanges between military entities of vital importance,” the statement added. On their visa application to enter France, the suspects said they worked for a company that focuses on “smart beams, signal recognition and satellite networks, and cooperates with universities establishing military-oriented projects.” POLITICO has reached out to the Chinese Embassy in Paris for a comment.

OLIVIER COLOM, LE “GRAND AMI” FRANÇAIS DE JEFFREY EPSTEIN Pendant des années, un ancien conseiller diplomatique à l’Elysée a joué pour Jeffrey Epstein l’intermédiaire entre politiques, hauts fonctionnaires et personnalités du monde des affaires. By  PAUL DE VILLEPIN, MARION SOLLETTY AND PAULINE DE SAINT REMY Illustration par Natália Delgado/POLITICO PARIS — “Est-ce que Sarkozy est dans les parages, j’aimerais le rencontrer si tu crois que ça peut être marrant”, écrit Jeffrey Epstein à Olivier Colom, par mail, en octobre 2013. Le Français à qui le multimillionnaire américain s’adresse est un ancien membre de la cellule diplomatique de l’Elysée sous Nicolas Sarkozy. Son nom, jusque-là inconnu du grand public, apparaît à plusieurs centaines de reprises parmi les trois millions de documents publiés fin janvier par le ministère américain de la Justice, baptisés “Epstein files”. En remontant le fil de la correspondance entre ces deux hommes, qui s’étale sur plusieurs années, POLITICO en a appris un peu plus cette relation. Celle-ci en dit beaucoup sur la façon dont Epstein, condamné dès 2008 dans une procédure de plaider-coupable pour avoir eu des relations sexuelles tarifées avec des mineures, avant d’être inculpé en 2019 dans une procédure fédérale plus lourde pour des faits de trafic sexuel sur mineurs, a tissé sa toile en France. C’est en 2011 qu’Olivier Colom apparaît pour la première fois dans la boîte mail jeevacation@gmail.com, l’une des principales adresses électroniques utilisées par le financier. Vingt mois après être sorti d’un centre de détention en Floride, Epstein est de passage à Paris où il possède un appartement avenue Foch, dans le XVIe arrondissement. Au cours de ce séjour, le diplomate et ex-ministère norvégien Terje Roed-Larsen, proche d’Epstein, lui suggère dans un message de rencontrer Colom. Cet énarque de 41 ans est alors conseiller diplomatique à l’Elysée, où il est chargé des affaires globales et de la préparation des sommets internationaux pour le président de la République Nicolas Sarkozy. PANTOUFLAGE ET ENTREGENT Parmi ceux qui ont côtoyé Colom au travail, plusieurs personnes dépeignent, sous couvert d’anonymat, un “bon diplomate, très sociable” ou encore un homme “posé et caustique”. “C’était quelqu’un de très gentil, très smart et très professionnel, qui ne s’est jamais comporté de manière déplacée”, raconte une cheffe d’entreprise, mise en relation avec lui par Epstein au milieu des années 2010. “Il était très imbu de lui-même”, nuance l’une des ses anciennes relations de la banque. De 2013 à 2018 au moins, Colom et Epstein seront en contact régulier. Après son départ de l’Elysée en 2012, le Français nourrit un certain ressentiment à l’égard de la Sarkozie, pour n’avoir pas hérité d’un poste à la hauteur de ses espérances, d’après plusieurs ex-collègues au Palais. Il se reconvertit alors dans le privé, rejoignant en 2013 le groupe bancaire Edmond de Rothschild. Il y travaille avec la belle-fille du fondateur et membre du conseil d’administration, Ariane de Rothschild. Une femme avec qui Jeffrey Epstein lui-même entretenait de longue date des interactions fréquentes sur des questions tant professionnelles que personnelles, comme l’attestent des centaines de mails. Contactée, celle qui est désormais patronne de l’établissement bancaire nous a fait savoir, par un porte-parole, qu’elle n’avait “aucune connaissance de la conduite et du comportement personnel de M. Epstein” à l’époque, et qu’elle a été “profondément choquée par les agissements révélés ces dernières années”. Elle “condamne sans ambiguïté ces comportements et les crimes dont il s’est rendu coupable”. EPSTEIN VEUT RENCONTRER SARKOZY Dans toute la période, le Français joue ou prétend jouer le rôle d’ouvreur de portes à Paris pour son “grand ami” américain. “Quand tu seras à Paris, quel genre de personnes souhaites-tu rencontrer ?”, le questionne Colom le 24 septembre 2013. Réponse d’Epstein : “Des intellos, scientifiques… ou de très très mignonnes vingtenaires”. Les deux hommes prennent pour habitude de se voir à l’occasion de leurs allées et venues respectives entre New York et Paris. Des morceaux de l’agenda d’Epstein, qui figurent dans ses mails, attestent de rendez-vous réguliers. Epstein propose à plusieurs reprises à Colom de séjourner sur son île privée, située dans les Îles Vierges des Etats-Unis. Si Colom répond en août 2013 qu’il “adorerait découvrir [l’] île un jour”, rien n’indique que ce dernier s’y soit rendu. Les deux hommes échangent en revanche blagues douteuses et allusions à caractère sexuel. “Tu es où en ce moment ?”, demande par exemple Colom à Epstein le 17 juin 2013. “Sur mon île dans les Caraïbes, avec un aquarium rempli de filles.” Dans la même conversation, ils semblent ensuite évoquer, dans un double langage, leurs préférences sexuelles, comparant les femmes à des poissons et crustacés. Dans ses messages, Colom laisse penser qu’il se plie en quatre, fin 2013 et début 2014, pour tenter d’organiser une rencontre entre Epstein et Nicolas Sarkozy, dont il a été le sherpa-adjoint à l’Elysée, à la demande expresse du multimillionnaire. Le 31 octobre 2013, le Français écrit : “Je déjeune avec lui [Sarkozy] mardi prochain 5 novembre, je lui demanderai.” Quelques semaines plus tard, Olivier Colom, qui indique à plusieurs occasions être resté en contact avec l’ex-locataire de l’Elysée, demande à Epstein s’il lui serait possible d’organiser un “rendez-vous discret entre Sarko et Hillary Clinton à NY”. Le 24 janvier 2014, Epstein propose à Colom de venir chez lui, avenue Foch, en compagnie de Nicolas Sarkozy pour discuter de la situation au Moyen-Orient avec Ehud Barak, ancien Premier ministre israélien. Les mails ne permettent néanmoins pas d’établir si ces entrevues ont finalement eu lieu. Interrogé par POLITICO, le cabinet de Nicolas Sarkozy, après recherche, confirme qu’une rencontre publique avec Hillary Clinton a bien eu lieu en avril 2014, mais n’a pas trouvé trace d’une aide d’Olivier Colom pour organiser l’entrevue. Aucune trace non plus d’une rencontre avec Ehud Barak et Epstein, Olivier Colom s’étant d’ailleurs, à partir 2012, peu à peu éloigné de l’ancien président, qui avait ses propres conseillers diplomatiques. RÉSEAUTAGE À TOUS LES ÉTAGES Un autre homme politique français, Bruno Le Maire, a rencontré Jeffrey Epstein par l’entremise d’Olivier Colom. En septembre 2013, le Français informe ainsi l’Américain de son voyage imminent à New York et lui indique que son “ami” Bruno Le Maire “ex-ministre de Sarkozy et futur candidat à l’élection présidentielle sera également ‘en ville’”. Colom précise alors que celui qui fut aussi son camarade de promotion à l’Ena, cherche à lever des fonds. Contacté par POLITICO, l’entourage de Bruno Le Maire confirme qu’il s’est bien rendu, lors d’un passage à New-York en septembre 2013, à la résidence new-yorkaise d’Epstein dans le très chic Upper East Side, Colom lui ayant fait savoir que des “responsables économiques” souhaitaient le rencontrer. Ce n’est qu’en arrivant sur place que le futur patron de Bercy aurait découvert qu’il se trouvait chez Epstein — il ne serait resté que quelques minutes avant de “tourner les talons”.   Quelques années plus tard, le 24 novembre 2018, alors que Bruno Le Maire est désormais ministre de l’Economie et des Finances d’Emmanuel Macron, Epstein demande à Colom s’il a “gardé contact avec Bruno ?”.  Celui-ci lui répond “qu’il le voit régulièrement”, ainsi que “son directeur de cabinet” — Emmanuel Moulin à l’époque. Dans une correspondance précédente, peu après la nomination de Bruno Le Maire à Bercy, Colom se targue même d’être “l’un des plus vieux amis” de celui qui est aujourd’hui secrétaire général de l’Elysée. Le prétendu entremetteur se pousse-t-il du col ? Oui, d’après Emmanuel Moulin, qui a connu Olivier Colom du temps où tous deux travaillaient à l’Elysée. Sollicité par POLITICO, celui-ci nous affirme ne l’avoir rencontré, dans les années qui suivirent, qu’“une ou deux fois en 2017” tout au plus, dans un cadre professionnel — depuis 2016, Colom, après avoir quitté Edmond de Rothschild, travaille comme consultant à l’international via sa société de conseil “OC Advisory”. Grâce à son carnet d’adresses dans le corps diplomatique, Colom propose encore à son ami américain, en 2013, de rencontrer le représentant permanent de la France à l’ONU. Epstein sollicite aussi son aide pour obtenir un rendez-vous avec le  consul de France à New York — Bertrand Lortholary, aujourd’hui ambassadeur en Chine —, afin de renouveler le visa Schengen de l’un de ses assistantes qu’il présente également comme sa petite amie. Dans un autre échange, daté de juillet 2013, les deux hommes spéculent sur le nom du futur ambassadeur des Etats-Unis à Paris, Epstein laisse entendre à Colom qu’il pense savoir qu’Anna Wintour, encore puissante patronne de Vogue US, est candidate, ce que la presse évoquait à l’époque. Les échanges révèlent que Jeffrey Epstein, pourtant réputé pour son vaste réseau de relations, comptait sur Olivier Colom pour constamment lui présenter des personnalités marquantes lors de ses passages à Paris. “Es-tu dans le coin aujourd’hui ? Je serais ravi de rencontrer toute personne dont tu penses qu’elle me plairait”, lui écrit Epstein en juin 2013. Colom s’exécute et propose à Epstein de rencontrer tout à tour un ami eurodéputé (dont l’identité n’est pas citée), une star montante de la politique indienne ou encore, en mai 2014, le “vice-ministre russe de l’économie” avec qui Colom dit qu’il s’apprête à prendre un verre dans un bar parisien. Une autre fois, il lui raconte un dîner chez Jean Todt [président de la fédération internationale de l’automobile] en présence de l’ancien premier ministre du Qatar, Abdallah ben Khalifa Al Thani et de Rachida Dati. “Ça a l’air drôle, mais où sont les filles mignonnes”, rétorque Epstein. Réponse de son correspondant français : “Nulle part… ennuyeux. Il faut vraiment que je vienne te voir.” RENVOI D’ASCENSEUR En retour, le financier propose également à Colom de profiter de son réseau. En septembre 2013, Epstein propose par exemple de le convier à un repas avec Ehud Barak, dont Epstein était proche, ou encore avec Joshua Cooper Ramo, qu’il présente comme le ‘bras droit de [Henry] Kissinger. Au milieu de leurs échanges décousus, tantôt au sujet d’opportunités d’affaires, de voyages ou de montages financiers, apparaissent des propositions plus inattendues. “Tu veux acheter un vignoble à Margaux, j’ai une grosse propriété qui n’attend que toi”, fait miroiter Colom en avril 2014. Quelques mois auparavant, il s’enquiert des recherches de petit personnel d’Epstein : “Je me renseigne pour ta future assistante, mais il faut que tu en embauches une pas trop jolie…”, ose-t-il. Une autre fois, ayant eu vent — par Ariane de Rothschild — de sa quête d’un majordome, il lui suggère le profil d’un homme “qui servait Sarko à l’Elysée”. Au gré de leurs correspondances se dessine entre les deux hommes une relation allant au-delà de la sphère professionnelle. Dès 2013, ils sont suffisamment proches pour échanger des remarques salaces, comme évoqué plus haut. Leur amitié s’assortit aussi d’un soutien moral et matériel pour Colom lorsque, en 2014, celui qui est alors banquier d’affaires traverse une mauvaise passe sur le plan personnel. L’ex-diplomate fait part au financier de ses problèmes conjugaux, trouvant chez Epstein une oreille compatissante. “Merde alors [sic], tu es le bienvenu pour venir te reposer sur l’île”, lui écrit ainsi ce dernier. Trois mois plus tard, à en croire leurs échanges, il met à disposition de Colom son chauffeur ainsi qu’un appartement, lors d’un voyage familial de ce dernier à New York. L’été suivant, en 2015, Colom, manifestement frustré par sa situation financière, demande conseil à Epstein : “Je ne gagne pas assez, j’adorerais venir te voir”, confie-t-il, tout en informant Epstein de son divorce imminent. “Tu peux venir me voir quand tu veux, où tu veux”, je suis toujours disponible pour toi”, le rassure Epstein.  De fait, Epstein aidera manifestement Colom à négocier son départ du groupe Edmond de Rothschild où il officie alors comme secrétaire général jusqu’à début 2016. A l’issue d’intenses échanges, Epstein l’informe en effet le 3 février 2016 qu’Ariane de Rothschild — qui est en copie du mail — est d’accord pour lui accorder une indemnité de départ de 1,5 million d’euros étalé sur plusieurs mois et que Colom est désormais soumis à un accord de confidentialité. Contacté par différents canaux, Olivier Colom a décliné un échange téléphonique et nous a invités à lui transmettre nos questions par écrit. Il n’a plus donné suite malgré nos relances.

BRUSSELS — Disgraced British politician Peter Mandelson is facing demands to be stripped of his pension as a former European commissioner if investigators found he broke EU rules over his contact with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.  Mandelson served as a European commissioner between 2004 and 2008 and is now at the center of a spiraling scandal in Britain. Newly released files showed how Mandelson, who was a senior British minister at the time, helped provide Epstein, then a financier, with information about a €500 billion bailout to save the euro in 2010.  The European Commission is looking into whether Mandelson broke its rules, which apply even after commissioners have left office, though ethics campaigners have called for a full fraud inquiry by independent investigators. Mandelson should lose the commissioner’s pension to which he is entitled if he’s found to have breached the rules, the campaigners said.  “Given the severity of allegations concerning Peter Mandelson’s deplorable relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, the European Commission and European Anti-Fraud Office must pursue an immediate investigation to establish any potential misconduct both during and beyond his tenure as European Commissioner,” Nick Aiossa, director at Transparency International, a leading anti-corruption campaign group, told POLITICO. “Should it do so, Mandelson must be stripped of his Commissioner’s pension.” Daniel Freund, a Green MEP from Germany, condemned the lack of action and investigations against “the most powerful people on earth” over their links to the disgraced financier. “That EU commissioners were somehow involved with this universe is just outrageous,” he told POLITICO. “Taking away the pension would be justified if he broke any EU rules.” Mandelson, 72, was entitled to an inflation-linked pension reportedly worth £31,000 a year when he turned 65 for his four years as a European commissioner. This is on top of other any pensions from his time as an elected politician in the U.K. and in other roles. Mandelson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He has previously said he was wrong to have continued his association with Epstein and apologized “unequivocally” to Epstein’s victims. In a statement, the EU’s anti-fraud office, known as OLAF, said: “We cannot provide details regarding cases which OLAF may or may not be treating. This is to protect the confidentiality of any possible investigations and of possible ensuing judicial proceedings, as well as to ensure respect for personal data and procedural rights.” In London, Britain’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting said Mandelson should lose the severance payment he was entitled to when his career as U.K. ambassador to the United States ended over the Epstein scandal. Speaking to Times Radio, Streeting also suggested Mandelson could potentially be stripped of related pension entitlements. The opposition Reform UK party said Mandelson should lose the pension he’s entitled to receive as a former government minister. Noah Keate contributed to this report.

PARIS — Marine Le Pen recent public statements seem to indicate that she’s losing faith in her effort to quash the five-year election ban standing in the way of her becoming France’s next president. In her latest comments Tuesday, outside the gilded Parisian courtroom where she has been appealing since January an embezzlement conviction that knocked her out of the 2027 election, Le Pen told reporters: “I never expect a good surprise when I step into a courtroom.” But, she added: “I am a believer. I still believe in miracles.” The dour pessimism in those and similar comments is striking coming from a leader who had vowed to fight what she framed as politically motivated hit job. Le Pen even held a Stop-the-Steal-type rally last year after she and her codefendants were found guilty of misappropriating €4 million of European Parliament funds. But as the months have dragged on, Le Pen has seemed increasingly resigned, recognizing that her shot at the French presidency is slipping away just as her party, the National Rally, is enjoying an historic surge in popularity. Nonetheless, it’s possible the doom and gloom are all part of her strategy to express more contrition to get a more favorable verdict. Whatever it is, Le Pen has presented this appeal as her last chance to mount a bid for the Elysée Palace and acknowledged publicly that she may be forced to step aside in favor of her 30-year-old protégé, Jordan Bardella.  Tuesday’s sentencing recommendations appeared to confirm her suspicions at first.  Prosecutors asked the court to uphold her five-year electoral ban, but in an unexpected twist, argued against its immediate implementation.  Should the court agree, it offers Le Pen a small glimmer of hope. But it’s a legally complex and politically risky path back into the race, and one that Le Pen herself appears to be placing little hope in.  WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH IMMEDIATE IMPLEMENTATION?  In French criminal law, penalties are typically lifted when a defendant appeals a verdict to a higher court.   Part of the reason Le Pen’s initial sentence drew so much backlash is prosecutors argued — and the judges agreed — that her crimes were so grave that her ban on running for public office should be handed down immediately, regardless of whether she appeals.  But during the appeal the prosecution did not recommend immediate implementation because there was insufficient proof that Le Pen could commit further crimes if she is not sanctioned immediately.  SO, CAN LE PEN RUN FOR PRESIDENT?   In theory, if the appeals court rules in a manner that bars Le Pen from running in 2027 but does not order immediate implementation, she could appeal again to an even higher court — thereby lifting her ban temporarily. She would then need to hope that the gears of the justice system grind slowly enough to push the issue past the next election. But it’s not clear cut. Some French legal scholars have debated if and how a new appeal would lift her electoral ban at all. Le Pen has said she will make a final call once there is a verdict in the current appeal. She has also said she would drop out of the running if the electoral ban is upheld to avoid the risk of having the National Rally run its presidential campaign with no guarantee of who the candidate would be until the last minute — an ignominious end to a career dedicated to dragging her far-right party from the political fringes into the mainstream. It is unclear if a ban without immediate implementation, as sought by the prosecutors, changes her reasoning — but her comments to French broadcaster TF1-LCI after the prosecutors made their recommendation seemed to indicate that she’d still rule herself out in that eventuality. “If the prosecutors’ recommendations are followed, I won’t be able to run,” she said. Le Pen now has to hope that she’ll be acquitted, which appears unlikely, or that the case’s three-judge panel reduces or scraps her electoral ban. The judges are under no obligation to follow the prosecution’s recommendations. WHEN WILL THIS BE RESOLVED? The judges hearing the case are expected to render a verdict before the summer.   The Cour de Cassation, which would take up any ensuing appeal, has said it would aim to examine the case and issue a final ruling before the 2027 election “if possible.” 

Listen on * Spotify * Apple Music * Amazon Music In Litauen erreicht der Aufbau der Panzerbrigade 45 einen neuen Meilenstein: Die Multinational Battlegroup Lithuania wird offiziell unterstellt, Deutschlands bislang größtes Auslandsprojekt der Bundeswehr nimmt sichtbar Gestalt an. Rixa Fürsen berichtet direkt aus Kaunas über eisige Temperaturen, fehlende Infrastruktur und warum diese Brigade als Leuchtturm der Zeitenwende gilt. Außerdem: Außenminister Johann Wadephul wirbt in Canberra für ein neues Freihandelsabkommen. Warum Australien strategisch wichtiger wird – als Partner gegen Protektionismus, für Rohstoffsicherheit bei Lithium und Kupfer, und für eine regelbasierte Handelsordnung jenseits von Mercosur und Indien. Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt es jeden Morgen ab 5 Uhr. Gordon Repinski und das POLITICO-Team liefern Politik zum Hören – kompakt, international, hintergründig. Für alle Hauptstadt-Profis: Der Berlin Playbook-Newsletter bietet jeden Morgen die wichtigsten Themen und Einordnungen. Jetzt kostenlos abonnieren. Mehr von Host und POLITICO Executive Editor Gordon Repinski: Instagram: @gordon.repinski | X: @GordonRepinski. POLITICO Deutschland – ein Angebot der Axel Springer Deutschland GmbH Axel-Springer-Straße 65, 10888 Berlin Tel: +49 (30) 2591 0 information@axelspringer.de Sitz: Amtsgericht Berlin-Charlottenburg, HRB 196159 B USt-IdNr: DE 214 852 390 Geschäftsführer: Carolin Hulshoff Pol, Mathias Sanchez Luna

The EU’s top sports official has sharply criticized FIFA President Gianni Infantino for saying that world football’s governing body should lift its ban on Russia competing in international tournaments.  Infantino said Monday that Russia, which was banned by FIFA following the country’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, should be allowed to compete again, claiming that bans and boycotts “create more hatred.” It would send a positive message to have “girls and boys from Russia” participating in football tournaments across Europe, he added.  European Sport Commissioner Glenn Micallef pushed back Wednesday, calling for the ban to remain in place in a social media post with the hashtag #YellowCardForFIFA.  “Sport does not exist in a vacuum. It reflects who we are and what we choose to stand for,” Micallef said. “Letting aggressors return to global football as if nothing happened ignores real security risks and deep pain caused by the war.”  Infantino’s remarks also drew a furious response from Ukraine.   “679 Ukrainian girls and boys will never be able to play football — Russia killed them,” said Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Minister Andrii Sybiha on social media. “And it keeps killing more while moral degenerates suggest lifting bans, despite Russia’s failure to end its war.”  Moscow, unsurprisingly, embraced Infantino’s suggestion. “We have seen these statements [by Infantino], and we welcome them,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “It’s high time to think about this.”  The U.S. is hosting the men’s World Cup this summer together with Mexico and Canada. Even if the ban were lifted, Russia could not compete as it did not take part in the qualifying rounds.  Infantino maintains close ties with Donald Trump and in December gave him the newly created FIFA Peace Prize — widely seen as a token honor — after the American president was not awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The sporting world is increasingly softening in its stance on Russian participation in tournaments, with International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry signaling that Russian athletes shouldn’t be held responsible for the actions of their government.

A Hungarian court on Wednesday sentenced German national Maja T. to eight years in prison on charges related to an assault on a group of right-wing extremists in Budapest two years ago. The case attracted national attention in Germany following the extradition of the defendant to Hungary in 2024, a move which Germany’s top court subsequently judged to have been illegal. Politicians on the German left have repeatedly expressed concern over whether the defendant, who identifies as non-binary, was being treated fairly by Hungary’s legal system. Hungarian prosecutors accused Maja T. of taking part in a series of violent attacks on people during a neo-Nazi gathering in Budapest in February 2023, with attackers allegedly using batons and rubber hammers and injuring several people, some seriously. The defendant was accused of acting alongside members of a German extreme-left group known as Hammerbande or “Antifa Ost.” The Budapest court found Maja T. guilty of attempting to inflict life-threatening bodily harm and membership in a criminal organization. The prosecution had sought a 24-year prison sentence, arguing the verdict should serve as a deterrent; the defendant has a right to appeal. German politicians on the left condemned the court’s decision. “The Hungarian government has politicized the proceedings against Maja T. from the very beginning,” Helge Limburg, a Greens lawmaker focused on legal policy, wrote on X. “It’s a bad day for the rule of law.” The case sparked political tensions between Hungary and Germany after Maja T. went on a hunger strike in June to protest conditions in jail. Several German lawmakers later visited to express their solidarity, and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul called on Hungary to improve detention conditions for Maja T. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s illiberal government is frequently accused of launching a culture war on LGBTQ+ people, including by moving to ban Pride events, raising concerns among German left-wing politicians and activists over the treatment of Maja T. by the country’s legal system. Maja T.’s lawyers criticized the handling of evidence and what they described as the rudimentary hearing of witnesses, according to German media reports.