Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia’s president, has personally intervened to protect the redevelopment of a controversial site Belgrade’s golden master plan. The former Yugoslav Ministry of Defence building will soon become home to Trump Tower Belgrade. With Jared Kushner and Affinity Global at the helm, this guide is taking shape. Fears have escalated due to its potential effect on Serbia’s valuable cultural heritage and the transparency and integrity of the approval process.
The $500 million project would convert the iconic, historic structure into a high-end mixed-use hotel and apartment development. The Serbian government had recognized the importance of the building before, granting it protected status under cultural heritage laws in 2005. This historic designation was removed to allow the redevelopment to move forward, shocking many local historians and heritage advocates.
Vucic claims that the sale of the site is above board. He added, “There wasn’t any sort of a fraud,” in response to accusations that the approval process had been opaque. Vucic emphasized the need for progress in Serbia, stating, “Nothing’s happened for 26 years, let’s get it sorted out.” Indeed, his administration continues to work on building closer relations with the US. They are convinced that working together with American investors is key to Serbia’s continued development.
In an unusual party line switch, Goran Vasic is under fire. The then acting director of the Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments had reportedly falsified expert assessments to remove the buildings protected state. More than a month after his arrest by Serbian organized crime prosecutors on May 14, Vasic’s actions are being prosecuted as criminal offenses. This recent revelation has only increased distrust of the honesty of the whole redevelopment process.
Estela Radonjic Zivkov, former deputy director of the Republic Institute for the Protection of Monuments, shared her concerns. She stressed the long-term improvement the project could make to Serbia’s cultural inheritance. She stated, “For Serbia to progress, it must first respect its own laws and cultural heritage.” Zivkov condemned the loss of heritage for the sake of private gain.
Incorrigible though controversial, Donald Trump Jr. remains undeterred from visiting Belgrade. His trips come after Affinity Global’s announcement of plans to build a Trump International Hotel as part of the development. The involvement of the Trump family has raised ethical questions regarding potential conflicts of interest while Donald Trump serves as President of the United States. In fact, even before his presidency, Donald Trump tried to build a hotel on this same site.
Supporters of the redevelopment point out that it’s a chance to rehabilitate a long-downtrodden part of the countryside and create new jobs. Andrew Peirson, a private, local investor who largely funded the project, said he was angered by public opposition to the project. “If I’m an investor already putting tens or hundreds of millions into the country,” he said, “I would feel sad that I hadn’t been given the chance.”
Critics have long argued that razing or modifying historically meaningful structures is not how to move things into the future. Zivkov echoed this sentiment with a stark warning: “No serious city builds a modern future by demolishing its historical centres and cultural monuments.”
Local businessman James Thornley underscored the need to discuss the site’s poor condition. “That site’s an ugly spot and it should be fixed,” he said. He stressed that most consider redeveloping it essential to reimagining Belgrade’s urban environment.
Guy Delauney noted in a recent analysis that Serbia’s history remains complex and unresolved: “Welcome to Serbia; our recent history has been tumultuous and complicated – and we still haven’t quite finished processing it.” This feeling strikes a chord with anyone who has fought to save the character of their community in the face of new and intense modernization push.
Affinity Global is listening, reviewing, and responding to interests expressed by residents about the development project. Their sights are set on figuring out what’s next so to advance progress. The company’s role in this controversial project perfectly illustrates how politics, culture, and commerce converge on Serbia’s present-day architectural scene.