The Trump Tower project in Belgrade has become the focus of a criminal case for abuse of power and political controversy in Serbia. A Guardian investigation claims that Aleksandar Vucic personally chaired a meeting to discuss removing the listed status of the General Staff building to make way for a $500 million hotel and residential tower project.
The land in central Belgrade was given to Jared Kushner’s company for a 99-year rent-free term. Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump, is a former White House adviser and a partner of US President Donald Trump's family in the project.
Pressure to remove protection
On February 6, 2024, Vučić called a meeting at the presidency with Dubravka Đukanović, then director of the Serbian Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments, and another official responsible for cultural heritage. The topic was the future of the General Staff building.
The complex is the former Yugoslav Ministry of Defense and was bombed by NATO in 1999 during the operation against the regime of Slobodan Milošević. Vučić confirmed its protected status in 2016.
According to two people familiar with the meeting, Vučić insisted that the status be revoked. Under Serbian law, this was not the authority of the institute's director. An expert opinion was required to prove that the building no longer met the conditions for protection.
A week after the signing of the contract on May 13, 2024, Finance Minister Sinisa Mali held another meeting with Đukanović and Olivera Vučković, a senior official for the protection of cultural heritage in Belgrade. According to the indictment, he insisted that they initiate a procedure to remove the status or resign.
“I cannot agree to inappropriate interventions that would permanently destroy all the values of the complex“, Đukanović wrote in her resignation.Accusations and suspension of the project
In November 2025, Serbian authorities announced that the building had been stripped of its protected status. Arrests and charges against representatives of the state system for the protection of cultural heritage followed. In December 2025, Culture Minister Nikola Selaković was indicted on charges of abuse of office.
The indictment does not mention the initial meeting with Vučić, although witness statements indicate that it took place. A spokesman for the specialized prosecutor's office said it was investigating the possible criminal liability of other individuals. Vučić is not a defendant in the case, and Sinisa Mali also denies any wrongdoing.
After the charges were filed, Kushner's company announced that the project would not be implemented "at this stage". Vučić said: "We have lost an exceptional investment. I will personally ensure that anyone who contributed to this harm is held accountable.“
Representatives of the Trump and Kushner families deny any involvement in the removal of the protected status. They call the claim that the project is part of a scheme in which political influence is exchanged for business benefits false.
Witnesses in the case are expected to testify after the elections in Serbia, scheduled for October 25. Vucic can no longer run for a new presidential term, but is expected to maintain his influence in the government through the position of prime minister.
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