Chinese and Serbian people are heroic nations with a backbone: Wang Yi
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, bangs his elbow with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic after a press conference Thursday at the Serbian Palace in Belgrade. (AP Photo / Darko Vojinovic)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, bangs his elbow with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic after a press conference Thursday at the Serbian Palace in Belgrade. (AP Photo / Darko Vojinovic)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in Serbia on Wednesday afternoon for his European tour of four countries ahead of the G20 meeting in Italy.
After a short visit to Greece on Thursday, he met senior Serbian officials in the capital Belgrade on a busy schedule, to discuss expanding political and economic ties.
A busy day for Wang Yi began with a meeting with his Serbian counterpart, Nikola Selaković. The two ministers witnessed the signing of a cooperation agreement between the Chinese and Serbian foreign ministries.
The highlight of the visit was the one-on-one meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, covering many topics including mutual support in the global political arena and burgeoning economic collaboration.
“We have an exceptional relationship and a ‘friendship of steel,’ said Aleksandar Vucic.
“I would like to thank Wang Yi and President Xi Jinping for their support for Serbia. What positively surprised me was the point he raised today: the need for our collaboration in the field of robotics and artificial intelligence.With help from China, Serbia can move forward with the world’s most prosperous nations.
The economy was one of the most important topics of Thursday’s talks in Belgrade. President Vučić announced that China and Serbia are currently working jointly on projects worth $ 8 billion. At the same time, Minister Wang Yi praised the relations between the two nations as more than just pragmatic.
“Serbia is a special place for us,” Wang Yi said at a press conference. “The Chinese have a special emotional connection with Serbia. One billion 400 million Chinese know that in the western part of the Euro-Asian continent we have a friendship of steel, and that is with Serbia.
“The Chinese and Serbian people are heroic nations with a backbone,” he said.
This “friendship of steel” has been proven so far in many projects and in the fight against the coronavirus epidemic.
Analysts in Belgrade say Wang Yi’s visit was very successful, both on the political and economic fronts. After a two-day stopover in Serbia, Wang Yi continued his European tour in four countries with a visit to Albania.
