The Serbian prosecutor's office charged the minister in connection with the project of Trump's son-in-law

Belgrade - The Serbian Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime today charged Minister of Culture Nikola Selaković and three other officials in connection with a real estate project associated with the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, Jared Kushner. In a statement, they stated that they abused their positions and forged documents on the basis of which the government revoked the status of cultural heritage from the former General Staff building of the Yugoslav Army.

At the site of the former General Staff in Belgrade, damaged during NATO bombing in 1999, Affinity Global Development, linked to Kushner, plans to build a luxury complex with hotels, apartments, offices, and shops for 500 million dollars (12.1 billion crowns). In early November, the Serbian parliament accepted a special law aimed at expediting the construction.

Minister Selaković, who is considered a close ally of President Aleksandar Vučić, and the other officials are accused by the prosecutor's office of forgery of documentation and unlawfully proposing to the government the revocation of the protection status of this building. Goran Vasić, the director of the Office for the Protection of Cultural Monuments, who is one of the accused, has previously admitted to the media the forgery of documentation.

The project faces opposition from experts in Serbia and abroad, as well as from the Serbian public. Thousands of people have repeatedly protested against it in the streets of Belgrade. They argue about the architectural significance of the buildings and point out that the complex of the former General Staff is a symbol of resistance against the NATO bombing led by the United States, which is considered an act of unjust aggression in Serbia.

On the other hand, it is supported by President Vučić, who claims that the project will boost the economy and relations with the U.S. administration, which has imposed a 35 percent tariff on imports from Serbia and introduced sanctions on the largest oil company in Serbia, NIS, in which Russia holds a majority stake. Vučić has also publicly promised to pardon anyone accused in this case.