The succession of Jack Lang at the head of the Arab World Institute (IMA) becomes concrete this Tuesday with the officialization by a board of directors of the resignation of the former minister, caught up in his ties with Jeffrey Epstein. Anne-Claire Legendre, a close diplomat advisor to President Emmanuel Macron, has been proposed to the members of the board of directors to replace Jack Lang, and promptly appointed.
“Mrs. Anne-Claire Legendre has the experience, qualities, and strategic vision necessary to assume these prominent responsibilities,” explained Jean-Noël Barrot in a statement. “If elected, she will become the first woman to preside over the IMA’s Board of Directors,” he added.
Her candidacy was endorsed without obstacles during this Tuesday morning meeting, Anne-Claire Legendre, a career Arab-speaking diplomat, specialist in the Maghreb and the Middle East, meeting unanimous approval among the members of the IMA’s board of directors, according to concordant sources.
The new president of the Arab World Institute (IMA) declared her intention to “restore serenity” to the institution after Jack Lang’s resignation due to his links with Jeffrey Epstein. “I believe that my role is to bring serenity to the IMA and to restore public confidence in it,” she said, minutes after being elected to the head of this institution.
First Woman at the IMA Helm
At 46, she becomes the first woman to lead this hybrid institution inaugurated in Paris in 1987, a cultural and diplomatic instrument. Originally from Brittany, this career diplomat speaks Arabic, which she notably learned at the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations (Inalco). She is also a graduate of Sciences Po Paris and the Sorbonne (Modern Letters).
After 13 years at the helm of this hybrid institution, a cultural and diplomatic instrument, Jack Lang, 86, was forced to relinquish control on February 7 after the revelation of his numerous exchanges with the American financier and sex offender, who died in prison in 2019.
On Monday, as he bid farewell to his teams, financial brigade investigators raided his offices at the IMA in Paris in search of traces of “tax fraud laundering” linked to an offshore company founded in 2016 by his daughter Caroline and Jeffrey Epstein. According to a source close to the case, his home in Paris also received a visit from police officers as part of the investigation opened on February 6 by the national financial prosecutor’s office after the publication of 3 million documents in the United States related to the Epstein affair.
“Slander Campaign”
“There is a slander and lynching campaign, and I say it, I tell you, we will see later that it is not based on anything,” Jack Lang reiterated in front of his teams, refuting all accusations and justifying his resignation by his concern to “protect the image” of the IMA.
Since the announcement of his departure, the race for his succession has fueled speculation in the corridors of power and is due to materialize this Tuesday morning with the convening at 10 am of the board of directors of the Institute. Composed of 14 members — seven ambassadors from Arab countries and an equal number of personalities designated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs — this body is expected to formalize Jack Lang’s resignation.
750,000 Visitors
According to an internal source, the former socialist minister plans to say a few words to assess his mandate at the helm of an institution whose budget is partly funded by a €12.3 million grant from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Subsequently, the board of directors, which includes ambassadors from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, or Palestine, as well as the CEO of TotalEnergies Patrick Pouyanné, is expected to decide on the successor to Jack Lang, whose name is proposed by the French authorities.
A museum, library, and language center all in one, the Arab World Institute stems from a partnership formed in 1980 with 22 Arab countries and was inaugurated in 1987 by socialist President François Mitterrand. Tasked with “establishing strong and lasting links between cultures,” this recognized private foundation of public utility was long dormant and, generally speaking, regained visibility during Jack Lang’s long tenure. In 2023, the IMA welcomed some 750,000 visitors.
