Letter of congratulations to the President of the People's Republic of China

"Serbia welcomes all the accomplishments that China has achieved since its founding on October 1, 1949. Under the visionary leadership of its leaders, with the strong unity of the Communist Party of China and in spite of the numerous challenges on the internal and international levels, your stunning country has grown into one of the world's most valued partners in the last seven decades, contributing to peace and stability as well as to global development. 

 

Allow me, Excellency, to express my deep admiration for you and other great Chinese leaders, as all the successes of China over the last seven decades have been the result of yours and their thoughtfulness, knowledge, courage and firm belief in the people and their ideals. With its unparalleled development in just 70 years, China has shown to the world how the tenacity, work and commitment of leadership and people can create an economic power from an underdeveloped country, a pioneer in infrastructure endeavours and a leader in the field of innovations, modern technology and space exploration. At the same time, China is one of the best examples of how to defend integrity and state sovereignty in a peaceful and dignified manner and how to resolve historical disputes. I am convinced that with your leadership in the successful implementation of reforms aimed at building socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new age, China will soon fulfil the great Chinese dream to the benefit of the whole world. 

 

I am exceptionally proud of the fact that the relations between our two countries have reached the highest level in history, and that now when I have the honour to be the President of Serbia and thus a unique opportunity to invest efforts together with you to further enrich our overall strategic partnership. I look forward to Serbia being part of the visionary 'Belt and Road' initiative, which through its expansion offers the opportunities for further progress to the whole world as evidenced by the increasing number of countries joining it. Serbia attaches great importance to regional cooperation through the cooperation mechanism of China and Central and Eastern European countries. 

 

We are looking forward to the development of economic cooperation, especially project cooperation in the fields of infrastructure and energy, as well as new Chinese investments in Serbia such as the successful investment in Železara Smederevo and RTB Bor, which, with the opening of new factories, contributes to the overall development of Serbia and the region as a whole. 

 

I avail myself of this opportunity to once again iterate my special gratitude to the People's Republic of China in helping us to preserve the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia, as a matter of fundamental state and national interest. Given its reputation and influence in the world, we highly appreciate China's understanding, especially in the light of recent attempts by so-called Kosovo aimed at illegal membership in international organizations and institutions. At the same time, I would like to reiterate the unwavering and unequivocal support of Serbia to the "one China" policy", said President Vučić in his congratulations, adding that he hopes for President Xi's soon visit to Serbia. 

 

Belgrade,

1st October 2019