Albania accused of fast-tracking Trump-linked resort before EU rules apply

A Dutch MEP has accused Albania's prime minister, Edi Rama, of "sneaky and disloyal" practices to push through a Trump-linked luxury resort before the country is bound by EU environmental law. Tineke Strik told The Guardian that Rama is fast-tracking the development on Albania's Adriatic coast to dodge rules the country would have to obey once it joins the European Union — membership expected by 2030.

The project has a high-profile pedigree. Jared Kushner revealed it in 2024, and it is backed by Kushner and Ivanka Trump, the son-in-law and daughter of Donald Trump. In a May podcast interview, Ivanka Trump called the scheme "almost daunting in its size".

What does the plan actually involve?

Thousands of luxury villas are slated for ecologically sensitive sites, including Sazan, Albania's only island, and Vjosa-Narta, a wetland known for its pink flamingos. The resort is meant to position Albania as a major global tourism destination.

The architect lineup has shifted over time. According to US media company The Architect's Newspaper:

• Berlin studio Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA) is believed to be currently developing the project.
• BIG, Kengo Kuma & Associates, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, K-studio and Emre Arolat Architecture had previously been commissioned to develop its framework.
• BIG has since said it is no longer involved.

Why is Rama under fire?

The Albanian government passed a law allowing so-called "strategic investors" to build in protected landscapes. The European Parliament pressed the government to repeal that law in June.

Strik, a member of the European Parliament, accused Rama of "trying to help realise the megalomaniacal luxury resort plans of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner". She argues the timing is the whole point: finalize the paperwork before EU standards apply.

"The government clearly intends to finalise the procedures before it is legally bound by EU standards," she told the Guardian. "I accuse Rama of serving his own interests and the interests of Kushner and not the interests of the environment and the Albanian people."

She also suggested the tactic could compromise Albania's EU accession process. "If Albania seriously wants to be a reliable candidate member state, it should respect EU law and not try to circumvent it," Strik said.

What is the Flamingo Revolution?

The accusations land amid escalating anti-government protests in the capital, Tirana. They grow out of months of peaceful demonstrations under the banner of the Flamingo Revolution, an environmental movement that began in June after groundworks started on the resort. The name comes from the protected flamingo species living in the landscapes earmarked for development.

"If the Albanian government had taken the 'Flamingo Revolution' seriously, we wouldn't be here," Strik said.

Two visions of the same coastline

Kushner has defended the scheme, telling the Guardian the goal is "to build to the highest design and environmental standards and leave this extraordinary part of Albania greener, more biodiverse and environmentally stronger".

Conservationists disagree. An ecologist at BirdLife Albania told the BBC the project "would completely destroy that wild region".

Rama himself frames architecture as a national asset. "I am a big believer in architecture and the power of architecture to influence the way we live," he told Dezeen in an interview, calling good architecture "a source of extra energy for the society".

With the European Parliament watching and protesters in the streets, the repealing of the strategic-investor law — or the lack of it — will likely decide whether groundworks continue at Vjosa-Narta before EU environmental standards can slow them down.