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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Serbia committed to strengthening strategic partnership with China in 16+1 initiative

Belgrade/Sofia, 7 July 2018

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic emphasised today at the Summit of the People's Republic of China and 16 countries of Central and Eastern Europe that is held in Sofia that the relations of Serbia and China are very important.

Brnabic said in a speech addressing the participants of the summit, previously opened by the prime ministers of China and Bulgaria, Li Keqiang and Boyko Borisov, that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, while he was head of the Serbian government, recognised the importance of strengthening our relations with China and initiated the strengthening of friendly relations and cooperation in all segments.

The Prime Minister especially thanked Chinese Premier Li Keqiang for personal support within the 16+1 mechanism and the China Global Initiative "Belt and Road", initiated by President Xi Jinping.

Serbia is committed to actively participating in these initiatives that are important for our country and the whole region, and contributed to better integration and strengthening of cooperation, said the Prime Minister, adding that, in addition to infrastructure projects, significant projects in the fields of energy, economy and culture.

According to Brnabic, modernisation of the Belgrade-Budapest railway, which is jointly implemented by Serbia, Hungary and China is the first cross-border project under this cooperation mechanism and is crucial for infrastructure connectivity.

That is why it is most important today for Serbia the signing of the Commercial Agreement on the modernization and reconstruction of the Hungarian-Serbian rail link in the territory of the Republic of Serbia on the section Novi Sad-Subotica-state border (Kelebija), which is worth €943 million, said the Prime Minister and added that this was fully covers execution of works on the project.

The Prime Minister said that regional infrastructure projects are the most important for our country, and that they will contribute to linking and stimulating the economic progress of the region.

She noted that it is precisely for this reason that the "Highway of Peace" is key for Serbia to the Albanian port of Durres, a highway linking Belgrade and Sarajevo and the highway to Bulgaria.

The Prime Minister emphasized that the remarkable political significance of the 16 + 1 mechanism is that it is a strong link between the East and the West and China and Europe.

I want to thank the people of China, President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang, for the strong support they provide in the implementation of projects. This facilitates the exchange of goods and the mobility of people and positively affects the stability of the entire region and further progress, said Brnabic.

Brnabic concluded that the Serbian government and President Aleksandar Vučić were committed to continuing their active participation in the 16 + 1 mechanism and strengthening the strategic partnership and the steel friendship between Serbia and China.

The delegation at the Summit in Sofia, led by Prime Minister Ana Brnabic, also comprises Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic and Minister of Mining and Energy Aleksandar Antic.

Author: Tanjug

The Prime Minister thanked the host, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, for successfully organising two very important meetings in Sofia this year.

I particularly want to thank you for returning the Western Balkans region to focus during the Bulgarian presidency of the EU Council, in a positive light, Brnabic said.

Like in the previous Summit 16+1 in Budapest, held in November last year, Serbia also received recognition in Sofia for the preparation of projects.

In addition to the Belgrade-Budapest commercial agreement, the plan is the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on the joint formulation of the bilateral cooperation plan of China and Serbia to be signed by Minister Aleksandar Antic, as well as the Memorandum of Understanding on joint support the construction of the Fruit and Vegetable Park and the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the projects for the reconstruction of the section on Corridor 10 on the Belgrade-Nis-Presevo-Republic of Macedonia railway line to be signed by Deputy Prime Minister Zorana Mihajlovic.