Albanians protest over Kushner-linked luxury resort on pristine coastline
TIRANA, June 3 (Reuters) – Thousands of Albanians took to the streets of Tirana on Tuesday night to protest a planned development on an environmentally sensitive part of the Adriatic coast by a company linked to Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
The €1.4 billion ($1.6 billion) resort is managed by Kushner’s investment firm, Affinity Partners, on an island off the coast of Albania and on an undeveloped stretch of coastline near the Vjosa-Narta reserve, a wetland that is home to flamingos, seals and sea turtle nesting grounds.
Environmentalists oppose the plan, which they claim will affect hundreds of hectares of untouched beaches.
The developers say they will proceed responsibly.
“Our focus remains on responsible stewardship, environmental recovery, job creation and long-term value creation for local communities. We respect ongoing public and corporate processes,” said Asher Abehsera, president of Sazan Real Estate Development LLC, which developed the plans in partnership with Kushner’s firm.
Affinity Partners and Kushner did not respond to requests for comment.
Protesters gathered outside the office of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on Tuesday evening, holding inflatable flamingos and banners reading “The nation is not for sale” and “I don’t want Albania like Dubai.”
“We want all construction to be stopped and heavy machinery to be moved away from the protected area,” said ecologist Joni Vorpsi from the organization PPNEA-BirdLife Albania.
“That would be a new city with about 10,000 rooms and it would completely destroy that wilderness area.”
Rama defended the project on Tuesday.
“It is very important that we remain welcoming, fair and under no circumstances suffer the stigma of being a country where investors are greeted with hostility,” he said in a statement shared with Reuters.
“As long as I’m here, there’s absolutely no chance of investment stopping.”
Protests from local residents and non-profit organizations began after large barbed wire fences were erected by developers at the proposed site in Zvernec near Vlora.
Hundreds of people gathered on Saturday and clashed with private guards, leaving some injured, a Reuters witness said.
Kushner announced plans to build the facility in 2024 as part of a broader investment that also includes a former army headquarters in Serbia’s capital, Belgrade. Last year, Serbia abandoned the project after street protests against it.
($1 = 0.8610 euros)
(Reporting by Florion Goga, Fatos Bytyci Editing by Edward McAllister and Peter Graff)
