Arsic said that Serbia values the founding objectives and authority of the World Jewish Restitution Organization, adding that Serbian and Jewish people’s mutual understanding was only strengthened by their sufferings in WWII.

Arsic said that the Law on remedying the consequences of seizure of assets of Holocaust victims with no living legal heirs, was passed at the beginning of the year and its implementation has already given significant results. Also, based on the Law, at the beginning of next year, on 1 January 2017, the Serbian budget will start its 25 years of financial support to the Association of Jewish Municipalities. In addition, he said that the Bill on Staro Sajmiste Memorial Centre will go into procedure at the beginning of next year.

The representatives of the World Jewish Restitution Organization, headed by Robert Bloch, thanked the National Assembly and the Serbian Government for the Law on remedying the consequences of seizure of assets of Holocaust victims with no living legal heirs, saying that Serbia was the first state in Europe to pass such a law, which should serve as a good example to the other European countries. “The fact that the National Assembly passed the Law unanimously is of particular importance”, said Robert Bloch.
The delegation representatives hope that the implementation of the Law would be successful and they are ready to contribute to its realisation.

They also mentioned the authority the Restitution Agency has in the process and Arsic informed the delegation that the Restitution Agency submits annual reports and the first results of the implementation of the Law would be visible at the beginning of next year.

The meeting was also attended by the Israeli Ambassador to Serbia Alona Fisher Kamm who said that the two countries’ relations are excellent and friendly and thanked the Republic of Serbia for its support of the Jewish community. She also said that this year marks 25 years of diplomatic relations between Serbia and Israel, adding that the Israeli Embassy is open to all questions the Serbian citizens and the Jewish communities in Serbia may have.

Finally, Veroljub Arsic said that the Law was passed with an honest desire that it give speedy results and that the National Assembly would do all in its power to monitor its execution.