President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev visited the capital of the Jewish Autonomous Region, during which time he spent an hour visiting the Freud Jewish Community Center of Birobidjan.
Before entering the JCC, President Medvedev paused in front of the granite block, which was laid a few years ago in memory of Holocaust victims, and placed pebbles at its foundation stone, a tradition among Jews to commemorate those who have passed away.
President Medvedev, Chief Rabbi of Russia Berel Lazar and the President of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia, Alexander Boroda, visited the community library and the synagogue, where they were entertained with a dance by the Ilanot Children's Ensemble.
Rabbi Lazar presented President Medvedev with a newly-published monograph written by Boris Kotlerman, a professor at Israel’s Bar-Ilan University and a former Birobidjan resident, dedicated to the history of the Jewish Autonomous Region. Community members also gave the president a copy of a Yiddish primer, published in Khabarovsk in 1984 and written by renowned experts of the Jewish language, Chaim Beider and Aaron Vergelis.
In a talk with Rabbi Lazar and members of the local community, President Medvedev commended the role of the Jewish community in the social life of the country and said that the meeting with the community was helpful to him. "The fact that the president visited the synagogue and Community Center today is a sign of confidence and respect for the Jewish community. And the fact that the president is visiting Birobidjan for the first time also represents the contribution being made by the Jewish community,” Rabbi Lazar told reporters.