”$20 Billion in 20 Minutes”: The Deal, the Story, and the Man Behind It - Exclusively with Paolo Zampolli

As Special Envoy of the President of the United States for Global Partnerships, Italian-American businessman and diplomat Paolo Zampolli has been capturing the attention of the world’s leading media for his recent achievements.

During his recent visit to Comtrade’s headquarters, Paolo Zampolli spoke exclusively with the Comtrade Podcast and Telegraf about the deal that made the front page of the Financial Times - a $20 billion Boeing agreement, sealed in just 20 minutes.

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On this achievement, Zampolli is straightforward: it is only the beginning.

“The Financial Times, it was a very catchy article. Twenty billion, twenty minutes, which became kind of like a slogan. I went to Uzbekistan and managed to convince the government to buy twenty billion dollars of Boeing planes, Boeing 787s, mostly, in twenty minutes. And that’s just the beginning. It might be also much more there. And I actually became the second best salesperson of Boeing after the President of the United States of America,” Zampolli said, adding that he is a great aviation enthusiast.

Beyond aviation, Zampolli is active in the world of sport, believing it unites nations and promotes fair competition. He attended the 46th General Assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia in Tashkent in January, and remains particularly engaged in football - a topic he also touched on with Telegraf.

“As you know, my president brought FIFA to the United States, and the Olympics. The president also gave me the Trump Kennedy Center for the second term, which is one of the most prestigious things we have in Washington. I organized the FIFA draw there with Gianni Infantino, and we have been working together on the upcoming World Cup, which is going to be a huge success,” Zampolli said.

He also offered a glimpse into his future plans as US Special Envoy for Global Partnerships.

“My title is Special Envoy for Global Partnerships. I push and promote the America First agenda - the agenda of the President and the Secretary of State. It is very broad, many many things. Besides Boeing, I am in charge of sports diplomacy, which is a fantastic thing. Our Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, really cares about it. And it is really about putting people together, the values of America, connecting all governments, all people - sport is for all. I was also in Tashkent for the election of Sheikh Joaan, and I attended the Games with the Secretary of State in Milan for Cortina. And now I am off to Africa - I will be the David Livingston of Africa,” Zampolli said, also responding to reports in The Times of London suggesting he intended to rename Mount Kilimanjaro - no small mountain, as he was quick to point out. When asked to reveal the new name, Zampolli did not hesitate: “It is going to be called Mount Trump.”

As Special Envoy of the President of the United States, Paolo Zampolli lives his life very much in the public eye - professionally and personally. So we asked him the question that naturally follows: how does he balance it all? Watch the full conversation in the exclusive video interview below.

(Telegraf.rs)