Serbia seeks deeper ties with China amid growing trade links
The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, met with China's leader Xi Jinping in Moscow on Friday and requested him to encourage Chinese investors to expand their business activities in Serbia. Vucic highlighted that Serbian exports to China have increased two hundredfold over the past decade.
President Aleksandar Vucic assured Xi Jinping that "all joint infrastructure projects between Belgrade and Beijing in Serbia are proceeding successfully." — "China is beginning to mean as much to us as the air we breathe," stated the Serbian president, as quoted by the Tanjug agency.
— "Just last year, we increased our trade exchange by 30% compared to the previous year. There remains significant scope for enhancement in this field," Vucic assured. He revealed that the construction of a train factory in Serbia by Chinese investors will soon be announced. After the meeting, he noted that two of the three largest exporters in Serbia are Chinese companies.
The President of Serbia also thanked Xi for backing his country at the United Nations, expressing appreciation for China's stance on Serbia’s territorial integrity. He affirmed Serbia's reciprocal commitment to the principle of a single China.
Like China, among others, Serbia, Russia, and five members of the European Union do not recognise the independence of Kosovo — the former southern province of Serbia, which declared independence in 2008.
The politicians previously participated in the Victory Day celebrations, commemorating the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany during World War II. Vucic is one of the few European leaders who travelled to Russia for this occasion. Besides him, the celebrations were attended by the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, the President of the Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Milorad Dodik, and Zeljka Cvijanovic, representing the Serbs in the BiH Presidency.
