Eric Trump told the Russian publication Home Overseas that the “bulk of buyers” in Trump SoHo were “foreigners, among whom there are a lot of Russians.”

He also added that the Trump Organization was expecting Russian buyers in its planned tower on Palm Jumeirah in Dubai. “We very much count on good demand from the Russians,” he said.

I haven’t seen these comments reported anywhere else before.

The comments from Eric Trump come in an article titled, “Luxury is Beyond Time,” on the website of the Russian publication. Although undated, it appears that he made the remarks around 2007-2008. Construction on the Dubai tower was halted at the end of 2008 as the financial crisis put the squeeze on the heavily-indebted Arab emirate.

Eric Trump’s comments in Home Overseas underscores what his brother Don Jr told eTurboNews in 2008: “Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets; say in Dubai, and certainly with our project in SoHo and anywhere in New York.”

Here is the full quote from Eric Trump:

In your projects, do you focus on domestic demand or are you looking for foreign investors? 

It depends on the particular project. So, in the New York hotel-condominium Trump SoHo the bulk of buyers are foreigners, among whom there are a lot of Russians. The fact is that New York is one of the centers of international business and tourism, many foreigners often come here and want to have real estate. Quite a different situation in Chicago, where most buyers are from America.
Another example – a golf resort in Scotland is interesting both to local golf lovers, and to Americans who want to play in European fields. Also in the case of the Dubai project, our Palm Jumeirah tower will certainly attract not only investors from the Gulf countries, but also Europeans, Americans, and representatives of developed Asian states. We very much count on good demand from the Russians.

The Trump Organization’s connections with Russia in the scandal-plagued Trump SoHo project have been exhaustively covered.

I’ve written before about how Dubai was a favorite destination for Russian criminals and international money lauderers here.