Pakistan has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the U.S. to renovate the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown Manhattan.

The 19-story building completed in 1924 was designed by George B. Post. In 2000 it was acquired by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). The hotel closed in 2020 and, in 2023, it reopened briefly as an emergency migrant intake center.

Islamabad officials estimate the property to be worth $1 billion. The Trump appointed U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) administrator Edward C. Forst entered the MOU to renovate the hotel with the Pakistan Ministry of Finance.

“Given the Roosevelt Hotel’s prime Manhattan location and the complexity of New York zoning and municipal processes, institutional coordination aims to reduce execution risk, enhance regulatory clarity and maximize transaction value,” the Pakistan Ministry of Finance said in a statement.

In a press release, the Pakistani Government called the deal a “strategic economic initiative.” It will collaborate with the GSA on “the operation, maintenance, renovation, and redevelopment of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York.”

The renovation project was announced not long after the White House restructured the GSA’s regulatory policies, as reported by AN.

The GSA’s role in the transaction is unclear because it primarily manages federal, not private properties. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff brokered the agreement with Pakistan. Witkoff is today working with Jared Kushner on a masterplan for Gaza under the auspices of Trump’s Board of Peace.

The Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced in January that Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif accepted the Trump administration’s invitation to join the Board of Peace, although reports indicate it still has not paid the $1 billion cost of admission. Sharif attended the Board of Peace’s inaugural meeting in Washington, D.C. on February 19 with other world leaders.

The GSA and Pakistani Government announced the Roosevelt Hotel’s redevelopment the same day as the Board of Peace’s inaugural meeting, on February 19, however there is no mention of the Midtown property in the meeting’s full transcript.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is in the process of restructuring and privatizing Pakistan’s domestic and foreign assets. The $7 billion IMF program entails renovating the Roosevelt Hotel. It’s been suggested that Pakistan may use IMF funds to gain admission to the Board of Peace.