Belgrade is ready to host Xi, Chinese flags flaunting; Xi ahead of visit: Land of beauty and legends PHOTO

The last time Xi was in Serbia was back in 2016, which was the first visit of the President of China to Serbia after 32 years, and on that occasion the Declaration on Strategic Partnership was signed.

Xi arrives for the anniversary: On this day, the Chinese embassy was hit in a NATO bombing

Xi is coming to Belgrade on the anniversary of the NATO bombing of the Chinese embassy building in New Belgrade, in which three Chinese journalists were killed. Xinhua correspondent Shao Junhaun and Guangming daily correspondents Su Xinghua and Zhu Ying were killed.

In the rocket attack on the Chinese Embassy, which happened 15 minutes before midnight, 20 people were injured. The embassy, which was visibly marked as a building of diplomatic importance, was hit by three missiles, and in addition to the main building, auxiliary buildings in the embassy yard were also destroyed.

In the attack on the embassy, buildings in the immediate vicinity suffered significant damage, especially the "Energoprojekt" building and the JBC Residential and Business Center.

A memorial plaque was discovered at the site of the bombing in 2009.

Xi: Second visit to the land of beauty and legends

In an author's text for daily Politika, Chinese President Xi Jinping states that he still remembers the friendly scene during his previous visit to Serbia and that he is looking forward to meeting Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.

"When summer approaches, all plants bloom. In this time full of hope, at the invitation of President Aleksandar Vučić, I will pay a state visit to the Republic of Serbia. This will be my second visit to your country, the land of beauty and legends, as the President of the People's Republic of China. Friendly scenes during my last visit to Serbia 8 years ago are still vivid in my mind, and in the past 8 years the close cooperation between the two sides has already achieved fruitful results of cooperation and injects new vitality into the steel friendship between China and Serbia," the Chinese president writes in an author's text for Politika.

Heading toward Serbia after visiting France

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is arriving in Belgrade today, was in France yesterday, where he spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron. On that occasion, the two leaders confirmed their commitment to promoting a political solution to the Iranian nuclear issue.

In a joint statement, Xi and Macron called for "concrete implementation" of the two-state solution when it comes to the conflict in the Gaza Strip and condemned Israel's policy of building settlements in the West Bank, Reuters reports citing Chinese state media. Xi and Macron urged all sides to refrain from taking unilateral steps on the ground that could increase tensions in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Welcome program: "MiGs", 3,400 policemen, festive lunch, wine and Chinese songs

Vučić met Xi in October last year in Beijing, during the third "Belt and Road" Forum, when 18 agreements were signed, including the Free Trade Agreement between Serbia and China, which should soon enter into force.

This is President Xi's first visit to Europe in the last five years, since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, and during this European tour, he will visit only three European capitals - Paris, Belgrade and Budapest.

He started his five-day tour with a visit to France on May 5, he will come to Belgrade on May 7, and after that he will visit Budapest. Major security measures were taken for Xi's arrival in Belgrade, so his delegation will be secured by 3,400 policemen, Tanjug learns.

Xi will be met by Serbian MiG-29 fighters who will follow his plane from the border, and a guard of the Serbian Army will be lined up in his honor at the Belgrade airport.

Chinese and Serbian flags will be placed along the highway in Belgrade, and a ceremonial welcome of the Chinese delegation, numbering 400 people, will be organized in front of the Palace of Serbia, and more than 30 agreements are planned to be signed.

A festive lunch will be organized, and the Chinese President will have the opportunity to taste Serbian dishes and wines, and a music program in Serbian and Chinese will be held, which will end with the song "This is Serbia".

The Chinese president will be hosted by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. The last time Xi was in Serbia was in 2016, which was the first visit of the President of China to Serbia after 32 years, and on that occasion the Declaration on Strategic Partnership was signed.

During the last meeting of the Chinese and Serbian presidents in October last year in Beijing, in addition to the Free Trade Agreement, several bilateral documents were signed, such as those on police cooperation in managing emergency situations, the construction of roads, the Serbian-Chinese industrial park, the export of apples, digitization.

On the eve of Chinese President Xi's visit, President Vučić told Chinese CCTV that China is Serbia's best partner in achieving national goals and assessed that Xi's visit to Belgrade comes at the right time, that he is very happy about the talks he will have with the Chinese president and that there is many topics to discuss.

He stressed that Serbia is fully committed to Xi's visit and believes that it will bring benefits and be in the interest of both the Chinese and Serbian people. Announcing the visit of the Chinese president in his address to the citizens, Vučić said that Xi is one of the most important world leaders and a sincere friend of Serbia and asked all citizens of Serbia to welcome the Chinese president in a "wonderful and hospitable" way.

President Vučić pointed out that thanks to the cooperation with Beijing, Serbia has gained a lot, and one of those things is a direct airline to Tianjin, and emphasized that we will soon get another to Shanghai, and that a third is planned, which will connect Belgrade and Guangzhou.

Chinese Ambassador to Belgrade Li Ming assessed that the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Serbia at the highest, state level, represents a turning point for raising the level of cooperation and upgrading relations between Serbia and China.

"We believe that Serbia will be a great host and that the visit will be successful and fruitful," Ambassador Li Ming told reporters at a conference organized on the occasion of the arrival of President Xi Jinping in Belgrade. The ambassador believes that the visit will make a new contribution to the peace, stability and prosperity of the region and adds that a number of development documents and contracts will be signed during the visit. Trade between the two countries is growing year by year, in 2023 it amounted to 5.6 billion euros, so China became Serbia's second trading partner. The largest Serbian exporters last year were three Chinese-owned companies, Zijin Mining exported goods worth 1.15 billion euros, Zijin Copper was second with 746.3 million, and the owner of the Smederevo ironworks, HBIS Group, exported 549.1 million euros.

The share of the mine in Bor, with the production of 240,000 tons of copper per year, is 24 percent of the total production of the Zijin Mining Group. Chinese companies also participate in numerous infrastructure and traffic projects, such as the construction of the "Miloš Veliki" highway section from Pakovraća to Požega, the construction of the Fruška gora corridor, the Danube corridor, the construction of the "Osmeh Vojvodina" expressway, the Belgrade - Zrenjanin - Novi Sad highway.

When it comes to railway projects, Chinese companies are building a high-speed railway from Novi Sad to Subotica, they are participating in the Belgrade metro project, Serbia is also buying five high-speed trains from China, and Chinese companies have built a section of the high-speed railway from Belgrade to Stara Pazova.

Chinese companies participated in numerous completed projects, such as the sections of the "Miloš Veliki" highway from Belgrade to Ub (including the bridge over the Sava) and from Lajkovac to Ljig, they participated in the construction of the Belgrade ring road, and the Pupin bridge over the Danube was the first in Europe in the construction of which Chinese companies participated.

Serbia and China also participate in energy projects, such as the construction of block B3 of the Kostolac thermal power plant with a capacity of 350 megawatts, joint communal projects, the construction of sewage...

On Monday, Xi visited Paris, where he met with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The President of China is accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan, member of the Main Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee Cai Qi, as well as member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, reports Chinese international radio.