"The goal is to support and promote activities between Chinese and Serbian companies, institutions and associations in order to advance of the joint cooperation, understanding and friendship," he said, stressing that the priority is to promote the favorable business environment and advantages of investing into Serbia, and providing Chinese investors with necessary support.
PhD Zarko Obradovic, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of National Assembly of Serbia, said that Serbia has the best relations with China in this part of Europe and that the country has signed biggest number of projects within the Belt and Road initiative.
"Establishment of the Chinese-Serbian Commerce Association opens numerous opportunities for the export from Serbia to China and we need to support them in this goal," Obradovic said.
Chen Hui, Director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Novi Sad reminded that the institute in Serbia offers language programs to Serbian students, high school and elementary school children in 16 teaching centres in cities of Belgrade, Novi Sad and Sabac, where participants also learn about Chinese culture and tradition.
"In last three years more than 2,000 local students have enrolled at the Confucius institute at the University of Novi Sad for learning Chinese language, among which 60 participated in Chinese summer camp, 600 took official tests and achieved good grades while 10 students successfully applied for scholarships to study in China's universities," Chen said.
He invited both countries to invest joint efforts to deepen their fraternal friendship and to promote academic exchanges between China and Serbia.
And the more frequent exchanges between peoples are even materializing.
"I would like to use this opportunity to reveal one secret to you -- we are talking about a second airline that will connect Belgrade with another Chinese city (after Belgrade-Beijing was established last year)," said the Chinese ambassador.
FURTHER DEEPENING TIES
Brisk business environment and close people links are pushing the bilateral ties to a further level.
"Along with the membership in the European Union, the cooperation with China is a high priority for Serbia," said Branislav Djordjevic, Director of the Institute for International Politics and Economy, which is the regional centre for projects management within the 16+1 mechanism of China and Central and East Europe.
Xu Li is optimistic about the business opportunities brought by Serbia's active involvement in the Belt and Road Initiative.
He said the involvement opens possibilities to enhance cooperation in areas of investments, agriculture, transport and infrastructure, logistics, information technologies, communications, trade, energy and mining, financial sector and banking and other areas.
Ambassador Li also mentioned the "friendship strong as steel," words used by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to describe Sino-Serbian ties before going to Bejing to attend the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation last May, saying the friendship is on its historically highest level marked by numerous mutual high level visits, economic projects and international cooperation.
