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Top Serbian lawmaker: relations with Israel a ‘high priority’

“I am pleased that the dialogue between us is constantly developing,” the Serbian National Assembly President said at the Knesset. 

By: World Israel News Staff

Serbian National Assembly President Maja Gojkovic visited the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, on Wednesday as a guest of Speaker Yuli Edelstein, where she lauded the close ties between the two countries.

After being greeted at the Knesset with an honor guard, Gojkovic laid a wreath at the foot of the memorial for fallen IDF soldiers at Weil Plaza, and then signed the Knesset guestbook at the Chagall State Hall.

During a work meeting with Edelstein and Member of Knesset Oded Forer, who serves as the Chairman of the Israel-Serbia Parliamentary Friendship Group, Gojkovic said that “maintaining good relations with Israel is a high priority in Serbia. The relations have indeed been warm for a long time. We would be glad to strengthen the cooperation between the parliaments, and there are many shared issues to deal with.”

“I am pleased that the dialogue between us is constantly developing,” she added.

Edelstein welcomed Gojkovic and the rest of the Serbian delegation, and thanked her for her “continued friendship towards Israel.”

He also praised Gojkovic for “working to advance the relations between our parliaments,” adding that ”there is, in fact, a wide array of joint parliamentary issues, and we will work together to promote them.”

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While at the Knesset, Gojkovic participated in a panel discussion on gender equality and children`s rights, along with Forer (head of the panel) and Hamad Amar.

Diplomatic relations between Israel and Serbia were established in 1992, when Serbia was still technically part of Yugoslavia. Israel has an embassy in Belgrade and Serbia has an embassy in Tel Aviv.

The two countries share economic and cultural ties, helped by a sizable community of Jews from former Yugoslavia in Israel.

Economic ties between Israel and Serbia have been rapidly expanding since 2009, in part due to the abolition of visa restrictions between the two countries that year.