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Visited Albania a month ago, Trump removes Paolo Zampolli from duty, clashes and personal attacks with the DASH official
2026-10-16 09:31:00 / POLITIKË
Italian businessman Paolo Zampolli, one of the people with close ties to US President Donald Trump and his family, is no longer part of the US administration. Zampolli has been removed from his post as US special envoy for global partnerships, the decision comes after reports of a months-long clash with Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau over the division of powers and respect for institutional hierarchy. His departure was confirmed by US officials on Thursday, just hours after Politico published details of the disagreements between the two officials, which reportedly included personal attacks in email communications.
Zampolli reacted after his departure, stating that his term was supposed to last one year, but that Trump had extended it by another six months. He described serving the American president and the United States as the greatest honor of his life, while announcing that he would now return to business and trade deals.
His departure comes a few days after the resignation of Kimberly Guilfoyle from the post of US ambassador to Greece, another figure with personal ties to the American president.
Zampolli: Serving Trump and the US was the greatest honor of my life
In a statement released Thursday, Zampolli said President Trump had previously steered him toward the real estate business, taking him away from the modeling field.
“Years ago, he told me I was really good at modeling and got me involved in the real estate business. Now he said to me, ‘Why do you want to work in government when you can do all these deals?’” he said. “The president is always right,” Zampolli added, thanking Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the rest of the administration. “President Trump changed my life once. He just did it again,” he said, announcing his return to his private life.
Who is Paolo Zampolli?
Donald Trump appointed Zampolli as special envoy for global partnerships in March 2025. At the time, the US president praised his experience in working with the United Nations, the Kennedy Center and various international initiatives, considering him useful for advancing American interests.
The Italian businessman has had long-standing ties to the Trump family. He has said that in 1998 he organized a dinner during which he introduced Melania Knauss, now Melania Trump, to Donald Trump, who later became her husband.
During Trump's first term, Zampolli was part of the board of the Kennedy Center. He also served as Dominica's ambassador to the United Nations.
Visit to Albania and support for the Bektashi state
A month ago, Zampolli visited Albania, where he held high-level meetings. During his stay, he also visited the headquarters of the World Bektashi Patriarchate, where, alongside Baba Mondi, he expressed American support for the formation of the Bektashi state.
During his tenure as special envoy, Zampolli has also promoted business deals, which he claimed to have secured for the American administration.
World Cup controversy
Zampolli was embroiled in another controversy earlier this year when he suggested that Italy take Iran's place in the World Cup. In an interview with CNN, he argued that he believed Iran would not participate in the tournament because of its war with the United States.
The proposal also drew attention to the fact that Italy, Zampolli's home country, had not qualified for the competition.
"A World Cup without Messi is not a World Cup," he declared, adding that Italy had enough merit, having won the tournament four times.
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