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Serbia's legislative body has passed a law that paves the way for a controversial real estate venture overseen by US President Donald Trump's family member Jared Kushner in Belgrade.

The business entity Affinity Partners has sought to build a premium hotel and housing complex on the location of the former Yugoslav Army central command.

The damaged structure, which was struck by NATO military units in 1999 throughout its campaign to stop the Serbian military operation in Kosovo, holds emotional importance to certain groups who see it as a memorial and emblem of persistent resistance to the military alliance.

Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic, who has pursued strong relations with Trump, has supported the plans in the face of demonstrations and judicial objections.

Last year, the Serbian government revoked the property of its protected classification and agreed a 99-year rental agreement with the developer's organization, which had set out designs for a $500 million project.

The determination triggered public gatherings and resulted in an probe into whether a Serbian authority had falsified records used during the procedure to change the property's designation.

Through a interview earlier this year, Head of State Aleksandar Vucic justified the proposal, remarking "it's important to transcend the legacy from 1999".

He continued: "We are ready to establish stronger connections with the US – I consider that is extremely crucial for this country."

The delayed development timeline reached a climax recently when Vucic's political group – which has a controlling in parliament – pushed ahead with a designated decision on developing the site and won.

Rival representatives have labelled the ruling unconstitutional, notably Aleksandar Jovanovic, who described it as a "offense", and asserted the historic site would be substituted with "casinos and spas".

At the same time, liberal parliament member Marinika Tepic commented the administration was sacrificing the nation's past "to satisfy the former president".

The enactment of the legislation has furthermore been criticised by heritage specialists, and follows after Transparency Serbia, an transparency organisation, voiced concerns about state-backed projects.

Per local media reports before his maiden election run, the former president in the past considered building a hotel in Belgrade.

Earlier this year, the developer stated reporters he was not aware of his family member's reported earlier consideration.

The decision to clear the way for the construction occurs as Vucic's administration seeks to sustain positive connections with each of Washington and Moscow.

Serbia has been affected by each of the former president's economic policies and sanctions on the Russian Federation's assets in the state, encompassing on its sole fuel processing plant, the mainly Russian-owned Nafna Industrika Srbije (NIS).