Economic relations to be lifted to new level, says Serbian envoy

A worker adjusts Chinese and Serbian flags for the upcoming visit of President Xi Jinping, in Belgrade, on Thursday.Reuters

China and Serbia are set to seal a dozen deals in infrastructure and science when President Xi Jinping kicks off the first state visit to the Eastern European nation by a Chinese president in 32 years.

Milan Bacevic, Serbian ambassador to China, told China Daily that the two countries will also raise bilateral ties to a comprehensive partnership during the visit, which is considered by Serbia as "a crowning moment in the relations between the two countries".

"In Serbia, the government and the people attach great importance to this visit," Bacevic said.

The ambassador expects that it could be "an excellent opportunity" to make the level of bilateral economic relations as high as political relations, as there is great potential for economic cooperation.

According to Bacevic, talks about the Chanel Danube-Juzna Morava-Vardar, which would connect the network of European waterways with ports in Greece and the Aegean Sea, will also be on the agenda of the meeting of Xi and his Serbian counterpart Tomislav Nikolic.

The construction of the Serbian section of a high-speed railway linking Belgrade, capital of Serbia, with Budapest, the Hungarian capital, carried out by a consortium of Chinese companies led by China Railway, was launched in December.

In April, Chinese company Hesteel Group acquired Serbian steel company Zelezara Smederevo for 46 million euros ($51.7 million).

The deal, which offered 5,000 job opportunities, is expected to become a pilot project of international production capacity cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries.

"This transaction should noticeably boost the country's economic growth," Bacevic said.

"We expect that the successful development of these projects will attract more Chinese investors and companies to our region," he said.

The ambassador added that the economic relationship between China and Serbia should enter a new phase which will be based not only on the development of major infrastructure projects, but also on Chinese direct investment, noting Serbia's advantages in terms of taxation and customs.

For example, based on established free trade agreements, all products produced in Serbia can be exported tariff-free to a market of almost 800 million people that includes the European Union, Russia and Kazakhstan.

Serbia's tax regime is highly conducive to doing business - its corporate tax is among the lowest in Europe, while value added tax in Serbia is among the most competitive in Central and Eastern Europe, the ambassador added.

"I would appreciate if Chinese people could better know Serbian history, traditions and culture," Bacevic said. "They would be convinced very soon that the Serbian people are good hosts."

Cultural links in the spotlight

A series of cultural activities showcasing Chinese culture were held on Thursday in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, ahead of President Xi Jinping's state visit.

Six bookstores in Belgrade are participating in a book fair to promote literature about ancient and modern China. The launch ceremony of the book fair, organized by China's State Council Information Office, was held at the Delfi bookstore in Belgrade.

Among the 105 volumes on display at the fair are ones featuring information on China's history and cultural heritage, as well as others featuring China's politics and economy. The fair will last for a month, according to the organizers.

The Serbia Chinese movie week also kicked off on Thursday in Belgrade, during which six Chinese movies, including some of the latest blockbusters, will be shown in Serbia between June 16 and 22.

The movies will be shown in cinemas in Belgrade and Novi Sad, Serbia's second-largest city. Organizers said the movies are targeted at the younger generation of Serbia to let them see the latest achievements of China's movie industry.

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