Visit of the Chinese President to Serbia: Can Kosovo be seen from Beijing? Aleksandar Vucic and Xi Jinping

Chinese President Xi Jinping is coming to Europe for the first time in five years, and from May 5th to 10th, he will visit France, Hungary, and Serbia. Commentators on Kosovo online emphasize that the visit to Serbia speaks to the importance China attaches to this country. The meeting of the two presidents, Xi Jinping and Aleksandar Vucic, in Belgrade, will mark not only agreements on further major projects but also equally significant face-to-face discussions on current events in the world and the region, as well as key issues for Serbia - Kosovo and the Resolution on Srebrenica in the UN General Assembly.

Announcing President Xi's European tour, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Dijian assessed that it is of great importance in promoting the overall development of China's relations with France, Hungary, and Serbia, as well as with the whole of Europe.

He emphasized that China looks forward to the opportunity to "consolidate and enhance ironclad friendship with Serbia on May 7th and 8th," and that the two presidents will discuss bilateral relations and the enhancement of China-Serbia relations.

Even Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic does not hide that the visit of the Chinese president is a great honor for Serbia, not only because it is one of the most powerful countries in the world but also because it is exceptionally friendly towards Serbia and participates in numerous projects with it.

He added that he is proud of the exceptional relationship between the two countries and regrets that in Europe, there have been "voices" suggesting that Serbia should not host the Chinese president.

"I am sorry to have seen that some European parliamentarians, since they dare not say anything to Macron, are taking it out on Serbia, and would like to prevent us from hosting President Xi. I am proud that President Xi will visit Serbia for the second time," Vucic said.

He emphasized that their state-owned company is constructing Expo 2027, engaging all Serbian companies, and reminded that as of July 1st, the Free Trade Agreement between the People's Republic of China and Serbia, signed in mid-October last year, will come into effect.

With this agreement, 843 types of Serbian products will be able to enter the Chinese market duty-free.

Economic and political aspects

Vucic pointed out that during discussions with President Xi, he will initiate projects for accelerated technological development in areas where Serbia lacks sufficient knowledge: robotics, satellite technology, and flying cars.

"This is a way for us to keep pace with the world and further develop our best relationships," Vucic said, adding that high-speed trains from China have arrived in Serbia and will be used in traffic on the Belgrade-Subotica high-speed railway.

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

When asked if the topics of the two heads of state will include the resolution on Srebrenica and Kosovo and Metohija, Ambassador Ming emphasized that China has a clear stance that it is necessary to fully respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity and dignity of sovereign countries. According to him, regarding disputed issues, they should be resolved based on full consultations and communications.

"China and Serbia are ironclad friends, and consistently, our two countries provide each other with unequivocal support on issues of essential interest and those significant for preserving territorial integrity and sovereignty," Ming said.

Asked to clarify China's stance on Kosovo, the Chinese Ambassador in Belgrade was unequivocal.

"Regarding the issue of Kosovo and Metohija, the Chinese side always respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia and understands the legitimate concerns of the Serbian side on this issue and appreciates the efforts of the Serbian side to find a political solution to that issue," the ambassador stated, adding that UN Security Council Resolution 1244 should always be the basis and framework for resolving that issue, and in that process of preserving sovereignty and territorial integrity, it should be respected.

"Double standards should not be applied here," Ming said.

The ambassador said that the Chinese side has noticed, regarding the resolution on Srebrenica, that there are disputes on that issue and about that draft.

"The Chinese side believes that all parties should, based on complete communication and consensus, jointly do things for the benefit of regional stability, and that should be in favor of strengthening solidarity and stability, not the opposite," he stated.

The importance of the visit and symbolism

Analyzing the visit of the Chinese president, Dragoslav Raseta, an analyst from the "New Third Way," commenting for Kosovo Online, says that the choice of Serbia as one of the three destinations on the European tour of the Chinese president undoubtedly speaks to the importance that Serbia has for Chinese investments and Chinese influence in Europe.

He adds that it is not at all accidental that the Chinese president decided to visit Serbia precisely on May 7th and 8th, noting that it marks the 25th anniversary of the NATO bombing of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Belgrade.

"In this way, the Chinese president sends a clear message that this event is not forgotten and that relations between the West and China are still unfavorable," says Raseta.

He emphasizes that the key goal of the European tour of Chinese President Xi Jinping is to improve the chilled relations between the EU and the People's Republic of China in talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, and that alongside economic issues, key topics in discussions with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic will be the issue of Kosovo and the Resolution on Srebrenica.

"This is his first visit to Europe in the last five years, and he will certainly seek to improve relations that have drifted apart in recent years between our continent and China. The political background for Serbia will certainly be the situation in the UN, the Resolution on Srebrenica, and the general question of Kosovo, but I think that above all, economic issues will dominate because there is still a month until the ratification of the free trade agreement between Serbia and China. That will be the main topic of Xi's visit to Serbia," Raseta emphasizes for Kosovo Online.

According to him, the fact that the Chinese president has chosen Serbia among the countries he will visit speaks to the importance that this country holds for Chinese investments and Chinese influence in Europe.

"With the visit to Serbia, a message is sent that China has Serbia in mind and that these relations have been deepening since 2009, especially since 2014, with more investments. The volume of cooperation and trade exchange is increasing, and from that perspective, this visit has been arranged for a longer period," says Raseta.

The key message - continuity

Bojan Lalic, Director of the Institute for Belt and Road, believes that the key message of the visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping is continuity in every form of cooperation, and that for Serbia, the friendship of such a major player on the global economic and political stage is extremely significant.

"When you look at the envoy of President Xi, how often and how many countries he visits, it is quite clear how significant it is. The significance is great. Is it significant at this moment? Unfortunately, Serbia is in a situation where we frequently come across such moments, so the much more important aspect is that continuous relationship of support and reliance rather than a specific moment. Of course, the specific moment is extremely challenging, but a new one will come, such is life. The friendship of such a major player on the global economic and political stage is extremely significant," Lalic explains for Kosovo Online.

He emphasizes that the key word that can most accurately describe the visit of the Chinese president to Serbia is continuity.

"Already, we are at a level of cooperation with China where the greatest expectation we have, and which will certainly be fulfilled, is continuity. Continuity of relations, cooperation in political, economic, and every other sense. That continuity and meetings of the two presidents, heads of government, certainly testify to that," says Lalic.

Asked about what topics could be on the agenda for discussions between the two presidents and whether the issue of Kosovo and initiatives for the adoption of a resolution on Srebrenica will be included, Lalic says it's purely speculative, but there is no doubt that the presidents will touch upon all the topics that are currently of utmost importance for Serbia.

"We can speculate on what the topics might be, but they will certainly be those that are extremely important for Serbia today, but let's leave it to the two presidents," Lalic said.

Strategic partners - ironclad friendship

Nikola Zivlak, Academic Director of undergraduate and postgraduate studies at the Asian Campus of the EMLYON Business School in Shanghai, assesses for Kosovo Online that Xi Jinping's visit carries a clear political message that China and Serbia are strategic partners bound by ironclad friendship.

"Any president coming to our country is significant, and when the president of China, the world's second-largest economy, visits, it is extremely significant. Especially since President Xi is probably one of the most powerful presidents in the world alongside a few others. The Chinese will see it as a great opportunity and a major trigger for further projects. I expect even greater intensification of cooperation, especially in some economic domains. As a university professor, I am also interested in the moment of academic exchange between universities, and I think that will be very significant," says Zivlak.

He emphasizes that the political message of this visit is unequivocal: China and Serbia are strategic partners.

"A visit by the Chinese president is always a big deal for any country, especially small states like ours. The political message of this visit is definitely that China and Serbia are strategic partners, that they have ironclad friendship," emphasizes Zivlak.

This is explained by the fact that during his European tour, the Chinese president will only visit Hungary and France besides Serbia.

He emphasizes that the focus of discussions between the two presidents will be on economic issues and ongoing projects.

When asked whether the visit of President Xi to Serbia also carries a symbolic message given the current events in Kosovo, and then the question of the adoption of the Resolution on Srebrenica at the UN General Assembly, Professor Zivlak has no doubt that this visit also carries a strong political message.

"In that sense, the visit is very significant. China supports us not only regarding Kosovo but also all open issues, of course, including Srebrenica, so in that sense, the symbolism is very clear: China stands by us, it's friendship. People should be positive about President Xi's visit," Zivlak concluded.