Germany’s left-leaning daily Junge Welt reports that the collapse of a major real estate project involving Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former U.S. President Donald Trump, has dealt a serious political blow to Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.
According to the newspaper, Kushner has withdrawn from a controversial plan to build a luxury hotel on the site of the former Yugoslav Army General Staff headquarters in central Belgrade, a project estimated to be worth several hundred million euros.
Investigation and Withdrawal
Junge Welt states that the project ran into trouble after Serbia’s Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation into alleged document falsification, which reportedly resulted in an indictment against Serbia’s Minister of Culture, Nikola Selaković.
Only hours after the indictment was filed, Kushner’s company, Affinity Partners, withdrew from the project, the newspaper reports. The firm had previously secured a $2 billion loan from Saudi Arabia intended to support the Belgrade development.
Public Opposition and Protests
The report highlights that the project faced strong public resistance from the outset, particularly due to its location on a site symbolic of NATO’s 1999 bombing of Serbia.
Thousands of citizens participated in protests, including a large demonstration on November 11, when protesters formed a “human chain” around the General Staff complex to oppose its demolition and what they described as opaque dealings between the Serbian state and the Trump-Kushner business network.
Civil initiatives and preservation campaigns argued that the site should remain protected as a historical and memorial complex, rejecting its transformation into a luxury development inaccessible to most citizens.
Extraordinary Concessions to the Investor
According to Junge Welt, Kushner’s company received exceptional privileges, including a 99-year lease of the site, while the Serbian state would have borne the cost of the extremely expensive demolition of the existing structures.
The newspaper notes that the investor would have faced minimal financial risk, while the burden of preparatory costs would fall largely on Serbian taxpayers.
Vučić’s Reaction and Political Narrative
The German daily reports that President Vučić blamed political opponents and the judiciary for the project’s failure. Initially, he claimed damages of €750 million, later raising the figure to €1.5 billion without presenting evidence, according to the report.
Junge Welt concludes that Vučić’s aggressive rhetoric and threats of retaliation reflect growing political vulnerability, warning that the Serbian president himself could be dragged down by the collapse of what was promoted as a flagship foreign investment linked to Trump’s inner circle.
“If Vučić continues to call loudly for revenge, he may ultimately sink together with Trump’s tower,” the newspaper concludes.
