Barak-Epstein tapes revealed: the problematic statements of the former prime minister

More than 3.5 million documents were published in the last few days by the US Department of Justice as part of the Epstein affair – including materials that embarrassed many well-known and senior figures around the world. The documents also include correspondence and conversations between former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including a recording of a 3.5-hour conversation between Barak, Epstein and US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers – during which they mainly discussed Barak’s business ambitions.

During the conversation, Barak referred to Israeli demographics in a problematic way that arouses controversy. “We need to open the gates for a massive conversion – in a successful country, many will try to submit,” said the former prime minister. He explained that in this way “we will control the quality of immigrants much more effectively than the country’s founding fathers could, who had to deal with the wave of rescues from Africa and Arab countries. They took everyone who came to save people – now we can be selective.”

 

“I think many would prefer to be Belarusian… many young and beautiful girls will come. Tall and thin”

Ehud Barak in conversation with Epstein and Summers

Barak added and described his conversation with Russian President Putin, including a comment about the appearance of the Russian immigrants who will arrive: “We can easily take in another million. I used to say to Putin regularly – we only need one more million, and that could change Israel dramatically, a million Russians. And I think many would prefer to be Belarusians… Many young and beautiful girls will come. Tall and thin.”

The exact date of the conversation is unclear, but it probably took place in 2013, according to reports in foreign media and the fact that it was said during the conversation that Barak was 71 years old. Barak served as Minister of Defense until March 2013, and during the conversation he discussed business matters and his economic plans for the future. At the same time, he made it clear that he does not want to receive an official business offer until he is no longer in politics.

The main part of the long conversation dealt with Barak’s business ambitions the day after his political career. During this time, Barak consulted with Epstein and Summers, the former Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, regarding various business possibilities. “I can find incredible adrenaline and satisfaction simply in making money,” Barak told Epstein at one point in the conversation.

With Summers, the conversation mainly dealt with Barak’s desire to realize business opportunities in developing countries, such as Mongolia and Kazakhstan. At one point, Epstein advised him to prepare “a list of people who owe you”, and tried to focus him on his business advantages – mainly in the areas of security.

In another part of the conversation, the three talk about their impression of the President of the United States (at the time) Barack Obama. Barak praised Obama and expressed an impression of his character and his ability to be alone – and Summers also treated the president positively.

Also, the former Israeli prime minister claimed in the recording that he tried to pressure Obama to act against Iran’s nuclear program. According to him, he told the president that a decision to delay Iran’s nuclear program by military means would look “more like the raid on Bin Laden than the war in Iraq. It is only because people have planted in your head dramatic scenarios that may develop that you judge it closer to those people’s opinion. And that is not a correct description of reality.”

The connections between Epstein and Barak have been widely reported in recent years, and from the documents that were revealed it appears that there was a friendly relationship between them that included many correspondences and that Barak consulted with the sex offender about a series of issues. From the recording and the additional published materials, no involvement of Shabarak in Epstein’s criminal acts, or suspicion of any other criminal offense emerged.