‘I’m not the Godfather’, Albanian PM says

Prime Minister Edi Rama has denied being the “Godfather” of Albania after weeks of anti-corruption protests prompted by the development of a luxury resort linked to Donald Trump’s son-in-law. The so-called Flamingo Revolution was sparked by public anger over Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump’s planned $4bn project on an island and near a nature reserve known for its flamingos. Protesters have called on Rama to resign and be prosecuted for what they perceive as systemic corruption allowing international investors to build on protected land. “People say that I am the leader of all this. I tell them fuck you. That simple,” he said. “It’s not for me to prove I’m not the Godfather, it’s for them to prove I’m the Godfather.”

Albanian prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for more than a dozen businessmen for drug trafficking and money laundering, including one who had previously owned land in the area to be developed by Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump. A spokesperson for Kushner and his other partners in Albania did not respond to requests for comment.

Rama insisted the Kushner investments were above board and there was no connection with the ongoing investigation into a previous landowner. “To say that the Albanian economy is [based] on money laundering, this is horrible,” Rama told the FT in his office overlooking the boulevard where tens of thousands have demonstrated every night for more than three weeks. “Money laundering [is] part of our economy, but it’s not such a big problem,” he added. “You think there is no money laundering in London? There is. But can you say that the British economy is in big part money laundering? No.”

Albanian anti-graft prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for 20 businessmen they said were involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. Billions of euros are suspected of having been funnelled to major construction projects along the Adriatic coast and in the Albanian capital. Among the targeted businessmen is Artur Shehu, a dual US-Albanian citizen living in Miami. Shehu in 2025 sold land near the nature reserve where the flamingos nest to Albania Land Development, a company linked to the Kushner project.

That deal came under scrutiny by the anti-graft prosecutors, who froze €128mn worth of payments pending the investigation. Shehu did not reply to requests for comment. Rama argued that his government allowed prosecutors to pursue cases more aggressively, which also increased the perception that the country was rife with corruption and organised crime. “In fact it’s the other way around. Albania is fighting like never before and is far less corrupt today than it was.”

He repeated allegations that the protests had been stoked by the US president’s enemies, including Iran. “There is a lot of interest to kill this project . . . because of Trump,” he said. “If it were not Jared Kushner . . . nobody would give a shit about flamingos, about Albania, about nothing. It’s the whole hate against Trump that creates all this scrutiny.”

He said he was confident that the coastal development plans would go forward despite the protests. “The important part is that the investors are not criminals and they are not [involved in] money laundering,” Rama said. “They are big investors. It’s a historical chance for Albania.” (FT)