Paolo Zampolli (born 1970 or 1971) is an Italian-born businessman, former modeling agent, and diplomat who introduced Melania Knauss to Donald Trump in 1998.
As of 2026, he serves as U.S. Special Envoy for Global Partnerships in the Trump Administration, despite scrutiny over his connections to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
Born in Milan, Zampolli moved to New York City and founded ID Model Management, recruiting models primarily from Eastern Europe and South America. Investigative reporting characterized him as exploiting "U.S. immigration loopholes to bring in young foreign models." No criminal charges have been filed. The agency overlapped with MC2 Model Management (Jean-Luc Brunel's Epstein-funded agency) and Trump Model Management.
Zampolli discovered Melania Knauss in Europe and facilitated her move to the United States. On September 26, 1998, he introduced Melania to Donald Trump at a Fashion Week party at the Kit Kat Club in New York.
In 2004, Zampolli worked as Director of International Development at the Trump Organization on real estate deals. In 2011, he served as Minister-Counsellor to Dominica at the United Nations. In 2020, President Trump appointed him to the board of trustees for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
On March 11, 2025, Trump appointed Zampolli as U.S. Special Envoy for Global Partnerships. As of 2026, he travels internationally for sports diplomacy, including visits to Romania in 2025 and Uzbekistan in January 2026 to discuss the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He has promoted unconventional ideas, including converting Gaza into a "Mediterranean Riviera with high-rises and shopping malls" similar to Dubai.
Zampolli co-ran a charity with Ghislaine Maxwell and operated in social circles overlapping with Jeffrey Epstein, representing the intersection of modeling industry exploitation, elite networking, and political access.
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