“This is also evidenced in the political dialogue between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Russian President Vladimir Putin who met twice in a very short period of time”, said Milicevic. He said that Serbia has created the legislative framework need for the successful operation of the ombudman which shows the country’s resolve to advance the protection of human rights.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights of the Russian Federation Tatiana Nikolaevna Moskalkova spoke of the Cooperation Agreement the Russian and Serbian ombudspersons signed in 2018 which will significantly improve the timely and adequate action in providing assistance within their purview to Serbian nationals in Russia and vice versa. She said that Serbia has some good practice examples of human rights protection such as the National Preventive Mechanism for the prevention of torture and the exchange of experiences could be mutually beneficial. To that end, the employees of the Ombudsman’s Office are eligible for training at the National Institute of Human Rights opened last year in Moscow.

The officials also discussed the situation in Kosovo-Metohija, Serbia’s path to Europe and thanked one another for mutual support in matters of national importance.