{"id":221936,"date":"2026-11-13T20:47:39","date_gmt":"2026-11-13T18:47:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/?p=221936"},"modified":"2026-11-13T20:47:41","modified_gmt":"2026-11-13T18:47:41","slug":"we-must-first-restore-its-status-as-a-cultural-heritage-site-what-will-happen-to-the-general-staff-complex-after-the-student-list-takes-power-revealed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/serbiantimes.info\/en\/we-must-first-restore-its-status-as-a-cultural-heritage-site-what-will-happen-to-the-general-staff-complex-after-the-student-list-takes-power-revealed\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cWE MUST FIRST RESTORE ITS STATUS AS A CULTURAL HERITAGE SITE\u201d: What will happen to the General Staff complex after the Student List takes power revealed!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The<\/em><\/strong> complex of buildings that once housed the General Staff of the Yugoslav and Serbian Armed Forces<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, which the outgoing government initially wanted to demolish and then sell to US President Donald Trump\u2019s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is also part of the Student List\u2019s program. According to a source who spoke to Nova, the group has already defined the first steps it intends to take regarding this cultural landmark.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The General Staff complex appears to have been a potential \u201cgold mine\u201d for Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107\u2019s outgoing administration, which was determined to make use of it at any cost \u2014 first by proposing its demolition and then by selling it to someone who would have torn it down anyway and built a lavish hotel on the site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

None of that happened, however. Estela Radonji\u0107 \u017divkov, a conservation expert, one of the key witnesses in the proceedings against Culture Minister Nikola Selakovi\u0107, and a candidate on the Student List, has now outlined what could happen to the complex next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat we urgently need to do for the General Staff, from a legal and procedural standpoint, is fully restore its protected cultural heritage status. There are currently two options. One is for the Constitutional Court to resume its work and overturn the government\u2019s decision. I would remind you that an initiative to that effect was submitted almost two years ago. This would, in a way, legally challenge the special law,\u201d Radonji\u0107 \u017divkov explained to our outlet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second option, she added, would be for the National Assembly to adopt such a decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf that cannot be achieved through the legislative route, or through the courts, then the National Assembly will probably have to make that decision. Regardless, the heritage protection authorities will prepare a new proposal to designate the General Staff as an immovable cultural heritage site, this time of exceptional importance. In other words, its classification will be upgraded, thereby restoring full legal protection, whichever way we choose to approach the matter,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next step will be to reassess the structural stability of the buildings, our source added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe need to repeat the assessment and carry out a new structural stability evaluation, with a structural engineering project presumably prepared by the Faculty of Civil Engineering. After that, we can begin discussing its restoration and reconstruction, how this should be done, and what purpose the complex should serve. In any case, its use must remain public.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Restoration and reconstruction<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Radonji\u0107 \u017divkov explained that work on reconstructing the General Staff complex should begin as soon as possible, since reconstruction is entirely permissible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cReconstruction is fully permitted, given that the complex was destroyed during the bombing. Restoration is possible in accordance with all conservation standards,\u201d she stressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although existing structural analyses have shown that restoration is possible, new data must nevertheless be obtained before any decisions are made, she emphasized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe need to obtain updated information, because a considerable amount of time has passed, and then begin a professional discussion about how the complex should be restored. What matters is that it will certainly be restored. The only question is exactly how.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experts, not politicians<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The conservation expert believes that decisions concerning the General Staff should be made by professionals, not politicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will leave it to the experts to decide how the General Staff should be preserved and what form that preservation should take. There is absolutely no doubt about that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She stressed that the new National Assembly must first be constituted so that the incoming authorities can obtain all the documentation relating to the General Staff case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Student List has not yet taken power. We do not even have a constituted National Assembly, let alone the ministries where all the documentation is held. It is not just in the Ministry of Culture, but across several other institutions as well. The next hearing is scheduled for the 23rd, and we hope the court has primarily examined those documents since the investigations began, which means there are grounds to suspect wrongdoing. We hope the court, or rather the prosecution, will continue its work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said she was aware of the condition in which she and her colleagues would find the Ministry of Culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe situation is certainly far from good, simply because the General Staff is not the only issue. The entire heritage protection sector has been significantly degraded, and cultural heritage is under considerable threat. Not to mention the new court case concerning Hotel Jugoslavija, which, unfortunately, had never been officially designated as a cultural heritage site. Many villas and entire areas of Belgrade will undoubtedly come under scrutiny, including Neimar, Vra\u010dar, Dedinje, Slobodi\u0161te, the Fairgrounds and others,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She emphasized that all cultural heritage sites would undergo a detailed assessment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe first step will certainly be a thorough analysis of cultural heritage, including projects that are currently underway or under threat, as well as those that have not yet attracted attention. Any work that has already begun will be halted if necessary,\u201d our source explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Estela Radonji\u0107 \u017divkov is also a witness in the proceedings against Culture Minister Nikola Selakovi\u0107 and three other defendants in the General Staff case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI expect the facts and evidence to establish independently what happened and whether anyone bears criminal responsibility for it. I am a witness in these proceedings, and my role is neither to pass judgment nor to assess who is guilty. My obligation is to tell the court the truth about what I know and what I witnessed firsthand,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She believes the court will establish the facts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to believe that it will. The General Staff case has shown me just how important it is for institutions to be able to do their jobs without political pressure. That applies to cultural heritage protection institutions, but even more so to the prosecution and the courts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First its protected status was revoked, then the sale was arranged<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The General Staff complex went through several stages under the outgoing administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, in November 2024, the Government of Serbia revoked the cultural monument status that the complex had held since 2005.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Serbian authorities, led by Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107, then decided to sell the property to US President Donald Trump\u2019s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. However, following public pressure and protests in defense of the General Staff complex, Kushner withdrew from the deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soon afterwards, the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office for Organized Crime filed an indictment proposal against Culture Minister Nikola Selakovi\u0107, who was serving in a technical capacity, and several other individuals on suspicion of abuse of office and interference with documentation in order to have the complex\u2019s protected status revoked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trials are still ongoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MORE TOPICS:<\/mark><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

\u017dOC CELEBRATES THE STUDENTS\u2019 VICTORY: \u201cI\u2019m happy with the election results in Serbia, and I wish young people all the best!\u201d (VIDEO)<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BEHIND BARS, VU\u010cI\u0106 HAS HIS STRONGEST SUPPORT: His list won more than 65 percent of the vote in prisons!<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A VICTORY REONATING FAR BEYOND SERBIA\u2019S BORDERS: Swedish prime minister congratulates the students, saying: \u201cIt is time for democracy and the fight against corruption!\u201d<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHERE HAS REM BEEN ALL THIS TIME?! Dubravka Vali\u0107 Nedeljkovi\u0107 announces debate on Informer and hundreds of complaints that have been waiting for years!<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source:<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>Nova.rs<\/a>, Foto: <\/strong>ATA Images<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The complex of buildings that once housed the General Staff of the Yugoslav and Serbian Armed Forces, which the outgoing government initially wanted to demolish and then sell to US President Donald Trump\u2019s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is also part of the Student List\u2019s program. According to a source who spoke to Nova, the group has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2169,"featured_media":177735,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[856,253,14869,5766,2609,113,7162,886],"class_list":["post-221936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-serbia","tag-aleksandar-vucic","tag-beograd","tag-generalastab","tag-kulturno-dobro","tag-sns","tag-srbija","tag-studentska-lista","tag-vlast","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t