Vucic asked to lift Generalštab protection to make way for Kushner-linked investment

An investigation published on 15 October 2026 says Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic personally asked officials to lift the protected cultural-heritage status of the Belgrade Generalštab complex, clearing the way for an investment linked to Jared Kushner. The report is based on witness testimony and documents that describe interventions by the president before a development deal was signed.

According to the published account, at a meeting on 6 February 2024 Vucic requested a change in the complex’s status, telling officials there was an interested foreign investor. Two people familiar with the discussion confirmed this version. At the time, the director of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments, Dubravka Gjukanovic, and Belgrade official Olivera Vuckovic refused to initiate the procedure, judging that the legal conditions were not met.

Months later the Serbian government concluded a contract with a company connected to Kushner for development of the site. The investment was estimated at about $500 million and envisaged a hotel, a residential tower, shops and office space. Under the announced terms, the American partner would receive a 77.5 percent stake in the joint company while Serbia would retain 22.5 percent, and the land was to be leased for 99 years.

Legal scrutiny and resignations

The removal of protection later became the subject of an investigation amid suspicions of irregularities, including falsification of expert documentation. Gjukanovic resigned, saying she could not accept "inappropriate interventions" that would destroy the values of the complex. Both civil servants corroborated the sequence of events described in the investigation, while Gjukanovic declined further comment because of ongoing court proceedings.

In December 2025 an indictment proposal was filed against Culture Minister Nikola Selakovic and three other officials; President Vucic and Finance Minister Sinisa Mali were not charged in that case. In the same month the company Affinity Partners withdrew from the project, saying large investments should bring citizens together rather than divide them. Vucic said then that Serbia had lost a significant investment and announced legal actions against those he held responsible for the collapse of the plan.

The Serbian Prosecutor’s Office for Organised Crime confirmed that pre-criminal proceedings are under way to determine possible responsibility by others. The allegations about Vucic’s role reported in the investigation do not amount to a judicial finding of guilt. Vucic did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Kushner rejected claims that the project represented a political payback, and the Trump Organization said it had no plans for a project in Belgrade and did not participate in negotiations over the site.

Photo: press material from the event