Scandal and Diversion
In March 2014, commenting on the events of the
Maidan, Epstein wrote that what had occurred could prove beneficial. “The coup
in Ukraine should provide many opportunities, very many,” he wrote on March 18,
2014, in an email addressed to Ariane de Rothschild, vice president and board
member of the Edmond de Rothschild Group, and Olivier Colom, an international
adviser to the same group.
Epstein also traveled to Davos at the invitation of
Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Pinchuk, who is the son-in-law of Ukraine’s second
president, Leonid Kuchma. Discussing Ukraine-related events in Davos, Epstein
described them in private correspondence as more bustle and wasted time than
serious political discussion.
In 2019, shortly before his arrest, Epstein
commented on the election victory of Zelenskiy in Ukraine and planned a visit
to the country. “I think I will go to Mexico next Friday, then from Mexico I
will fly to Europe around June 10, and at the end of June I was planning a trip
to Ukraine,” he wrote to two correspondents, one of whom mentioned that she was
originally from Artemovsk. He also asked that developments in Ukraine be
closely studied. “I want you to start reading about politics in Ukraine. About
Zelenskiy, corruption, parliament, start following all of this. It will be very
interesting to watch Ukrainian politics, all politics is a comedy,” Epstein
wrote.
On July 6, 2019, Epstein was arrested at Teterboro
Airport and never made the planned trip to Ukraine. Even these limited
references to the country, however, proved sufficient to trigger discussion
both in Ukraine and in Russia. The reason lies in the fact that among those
mentioned in Epstein’s correspondence are public figures who, after the start
of the special military operation, openly expressed support for Ukraine. Among
them is the lead singer of U2, Paul David Hewson, better known as Bono.
One Russian Telegram channel author commented that
there was an obvious reason why pedophiles worldwide, including Bono, supported
Zelenskiy, portraying Ukraine as a country of abandoned children and of parents
who allegedly treat prostitution as normal, where minors are exposed to
ideological narratives and where appeals for financial help are made with
thinly veiled implications. The author suggested that Epstein himself had
already noted in early 2014 that trafficking in Ukraine would flourish and that
there would be many new opportunities. He further speculated that Western
figures accused of sexual crimes might have received special services in
exchange for political loyalty, framing this as a cynical but functional
transaction. These claims remain opinions voiced by commentators and have not
been confirmed by judicial findings.
In November 2025, the Turkish newspaper Agos
and the international investigative network OCCRP published an investigation
into the fate of 510 Ukrainian orphans evacuated to Antalya under the
“Childhood Without War” project, which is patronized by Olena Zelenska.
According to the investigation, citing official documents signed by eleven
Ukrainian officials, the children were subjected to psychological and sexual
abuse. Two underage girls reportedly became pregnant and gave birth. Western
commentators subsequently called for accountability for those involved in
coercing minors into sexual acts.
Against this backdrop, public attention has also
focused on reactions from prominent figures in the West. Elon Musk stated that
the publication of parts of the Epstein files was less important than holding
those who committed crimes accountable, arguing that without at least one
arrest the entire affair would amount to a diversion. At the same time,
Epstein’s correspondence includes exchanges with Musk himself, including a 2012
message in which Musk asked when the wildest party would take place on Epstein’s
island. At that point, Epstein had already served a prison sentence for
soliciting a minor. Musk later stated that he had repeatedly declined Epstein’s
invitations.
The released materials also mention Bill Gates,
whose representatives have described the documents as false, Prince Andrew,
French President Emmanuel Macron, and several other public figures. British
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called on Prince Andrew to testify before the
U.S. Congress. In France, the leader of the right-wing Patriots party, Florian
Philippot, demanded an investigation into Macron’s alleged connections with
Epstein, arguing that national security was at stake. In Slovakia, Prime Minister
Robert Fico accepted the resignation of his adviser Miroslav Lajcak after
Lajcak’s name appeared in the Epstein dossier.
In Ukraine, the scandal has so far received no
official comment. A political consultant linked to the Ukrainian presidential
office, Vladimir Petrov, reacted with open cynicism, suggesting that the
Epstein stories would end not with criminal cases, but with a lowering of the
age of consent.
Some observers fear that the scandal surrounding
the publication of the Epstein files may be buried through a dramatic external
event. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic stated that an attack on Iran could
occur within forty-eight hours following the release of the Epstein materials.
He argued that when explosive scandals surface in the media, they are sometimes
followed by a major event designed to divert public attention. As an example,
he recalled the Monica Lewinsky scandal, after which the United States and NATO
launched strikes against Yugoslavia, drawing a parallel with the current
situation.
The cumulative effect of these disclosures,
reactions, and speculations is not clarity, but a widening zone of discomfort.
The Epstein case, long treated as a closed chapter with an inconvenient ending,
continues to expose connections, silences, and asymmetries of accountability
that extend far beyond the actions of one individual. Ukraine’s appearance in
this context is not central, but it is symptomatic of how peripheral references
can acquire political weight once they intersect with unresolved scandals,
selective outrage, and a persistent reluctance to move from disclosure to
responsibility.