Pressure is mounting for Lang to resign as head of a French cultural institute over his ties to the convicted sex offender.Listen to this articleListen to this article | 4 minsinfoFrance’s foreign minister has said he summoned ex-Culture Minister Jack Lang to a meeting on Sunday, as the country’s financial crimes prosecutors reportedly opened a probe into Lang and his daughter Caroline after revelations in the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s files.Calls mounted Friday for Lang to resign as head of a leading French cultural institute over his ties to the convicted United States paedophile.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listLang, 86, is the highest-profile French figure caught up in the latest US release of documents linked to the financier who killed himself in 2019 while in prison facing charges of sex trafficking underage girls.French media reports said Lang, who heads the Arab World Institute (IMA) in Paris, repeatedly appealed to Epstein for funds or favours, while his daughter’s name appears in the company files of an offshore company co-owned with the disgraced US financier.His daughter Caroline Lang, a film producer, resigned on Monday from her role as head of the Independent Production Union.Lang, who spent nearly 20 years as culture minister and education minister in different governments, has denied having any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes despite his conviction in 2008 for soliciting a minor for prostitution.Lang’s name appears more than 600 times in the Epstein files, the Reuters news agency reported.A mere mention in the files does not imply wrongdoing.Lang is an eminent figure in French politics and cultural life, who is known for, among other cultural projects, creating France’s annual Festival of Music. Advertisement On Wednesday, he refused to step down as president of the cultural hub focused on the Arabic-speaking world.Pressure has increased, however, and the foreign ministry – which provides half of the institute’s budget – has ordered him to a meeting.“He has been summoned by the ministry and will be received on Sunday,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency on a visit to Erbil in Iraq.Speaking later from Beirut, Barrot added: “The first elements emerging from these files are new and extremely se …
