PRESIDENT TADIC VISITS CHINA - 20-25 AUGUST 2009

TADIC AND HU JINTAO: STRATEGIC PARTERSHIP IN MUTUAL INTEREST

BEIJING, Aug 20 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Boris Tadic and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao agreed in Beijing on Thursday that the deepening of traditionally friendly relations and the establishment of strategic partnership represented a joint goal of the two nations and one of their top interests.

A joint statement issued after the talks specifies that the two presidents reached broad consensus on the further boosting of different fields of cooperation between Serbia and China, as well as on various international and regional issues of mutual importance. The collocutors gave their support for the territorial integrity of the two countries, and the Serbian party reiterated its commitment to the policy of one, united China, while the Chinese side underlined once again that it respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia. Serbia, as it was pointed out, will not establish official relations or have any other kind of official ties with the authorities in Taiwan.

Belgrade shall continue to oppose any possible form of Taiwan's independence and it will continue to back the reuniting of China by way of peaceful means. China, on the other hand, holds that the best way to resolve the issue of Kosovo status would be to draft a plan which would be acceptable for both parties and which would be achieved through dialogue and negotiations between the Serbian government and the temporary authority in Kosovo, all in keeping with international law and the objectives and the principles of the UN Charter and the resolutions of the Security Council.

The Chinese party also supports the endeavors the people in Serbia are making on the country's development pathway and it fully understands the problems they are faced with in that respect, it understands the efforts Serbia is making to be admitted into the European family and it appreciates the policy of Serbia that is aimed at the establishment of friendly relations with the neighboring countries, its efforts to help improve the stability and development of the Balkan region and the cooperation that exists between those countries, it was stated after the meeting.

Special attention was paid to the possibility of improving further the economic cooperation between the two countries, including the field of trade and investments. An intensification of cooperation was also agreed upon in the domain of culture, education, sports, science, technology, army and the police, as well in the field of tourism, civil aircrafts, health care, media and non-government organisations. President Tadic will stay in China from August 20-25, and during the visit he will meet with the top officials of one of the world's biggest economic powers and discuss various aspects of bilateral cooperation, with the focus on economic issues.

TADIC CALLS ON CHINESE COMPANIES TO INVEST IN SERBIA

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Beta) - President Boris Tadic said on Aug. 20 in Beijing that with the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement, China would become a key partner of Serbia in Asia and called on Chinese companies to invest in Serbia.

On the first day of his five-day visit to China, Tadic said at a meeting of the Trade and Investment Forum that he supported the improving of Serbia's and China's economic relations.

"In addition to political relations, which are at the highest level, Serbia wants economic relations with our friend China to improve greatly and we are very interested in intensifying and improving economic ties," said Tadic. "Some of your companies, such as Huawei and ZTE, are already present and successfully operating in Serbia. That is a good indicator and we want the other companies who are here today (Aug. 20) to come and invest in Serbia," said the Serbian president. "As a new form of economic cooperation we propose the construction of a new and modern port on the Danube and a customsfree zone for the production activities of Chinese companies," said Tadic.

He also said that one of the bridges across the Danube in Belgrade would be built with the help of loans from the Chinese Eksim Bank and the engagement of companies from China. He also underlined that the Serbian government was ready to allow Chinese construction companies to take on infrastructure works in Serbia in the amount of EUR1 billion.

SERBIAN AND CHINESE MINISTERS OF ECONOMY SIGN AGREEMENT

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Beta) - Serbian Deputy Minister and Minister of Economy Mladjan Dinkic and Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming signed on Aug. 20 in Beijing an agreement on economic and technological cooperation in the field of infrastructure.

As was reported by the Xinhua news agency, Minister Dinkic informed Chinese companies about Serbia's transportation capacities and tax and preferential policies for companies in the information, telecommunications and electronic sector.

Dinkic is a member of the Serbian delegation that began a five-day visit to China on Aug. 20. Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic is also part of the delegation which is being led by President Boris Tadic.

TADIC WITH CHINESE OFFICIALS ON FOSTERING COOPERATION

BEIJING, Aug 21 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Boris Tadic on Friday conferred with Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and Parliament President Wu Bangguo on various political issues and prospects for fostering bilateral economic cooperation. The agreed strategic partnership should be materialized through economic projects, they said. If the potentials of strategic partnership are used well, the people of Serbia will enjoy its benefits for decades to come, Tadic said. Other topics of the talks were cooperation in the science, technology and infrastructure sectors, with a particular emphasis on the planned construction of the Zemun - Borca bridge. The two governments should encourage businessmen to foster bilateral economic cooperation, Tadic and the Chinese officials said. Cooperation in alleviating the effects of economic recession, encouragement of mutual investments and market research are the central fields of bilateral cooperation at this time, Wen Jiabao said. Both nations should use the establishment of strategic partnership as an opportunity for deepening mutual trust and cooperation to the benefit of the people of the two countries, he said. President Tadic and Chinese Parliament President Wu Bangguo noted at their meeting that there are no historical or political obstacles hindering the fostering of friendship between Serbia and China. Pointing to the importance of the strategic partnership, Wu also emphasized the importance of inter-parliamentary cooperation.

TADIC VISITS CHINA'S ANCIENT CAPITAL XIAN

XIAN, Aug 22 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Boris Tadic is visiting China's ancient capital Xian Saturday, the third day of his visit. According to the program of Tadic's official visit to the People's Republic of China, he visited the Xian cultural and historic sites. On Friday, Tadic conferred with Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and Parliament President Wu Bangguo on various political issues and prospects for fostering bilateral economic cooperation. The agreed strategic partnership should be materialized through economic projects, they said. If the potentials of strategic partnership are used well, the people of Serbia will enjoy its benefits for decades to come, Tadic said. Other topics of the talks were cooperation in the science, technology and infrastructure sectors, with a particular emphasis on the planned construction of the Zemun - Borca bridge. The two governments should encourage businessmen to foster bilateral economic cooperation, Tadic and the Chinese officials said. The visit of the Serbian delegation, which also comprises Serbian Minister of Economy and Regional Development Mladjan Dinkic and Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, has drawn a particular attention of the Chinese media, which said that Beijing has laid the fundations for a new era of relations with Belgrade.

SERBIA INVITED TO TAKE PART IN EXPO 2010

SHANGHAI, Aug 23 (Tanjug) - China has invited Serbia to take part in the EXPO2010 world exhibition next year in Shanghai, at which economically most powerful states, as well as countries with high development potentials and prospects for foreign investments will be represented. Serbian President Boris Tadic, who will end Monday his five-day official visit to the People's Republic of China by participating in a Serbian-Chinese business forum in Shanghai, was briefed on EXPO2010 organization by his hosts. Serbia will present at EXPO2010 its potentials as a modern country with a long culture and tradition, undergoing intensive construction and offering great prospects for business and industrial development, Tadic said. Many creative people will help Serbia make an original presentation at EXPO2010, Tadic said. Serbia cannot compete with other countries as regards the money it will invest in its presentation, but it can compete with ideas, he said. During his two-day stay in Shanghai, Tadic was informed by his hosts on the economic potentials of China's most densely populated city and economic capital. Shanghai demonstrates how hard work and good policies can create one of the largest world business centers in only 20 years, Tadic said, adding that Serbia can learn much from Shanghai's experience.

TADIC ENDS VISIT TO CHINA

SHANGHAI, Aug 24 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Boris Tadic on Monday ended his state visit to China after talks with Shanghai businessmen at a business forum on investments and trade, pointing out that the visit had been a huge success. In the talks with the Serbian president, Shanghai businessmen were interested in the conditions for investing in Serbia, possibilities for business arrangements, and the economic situation in southeastern Europe. At the beginning of his address, President Tadic said he represents Serbia, a country that provides numerous possibilities for launching business arrangements to the mutual benefit. It is his great satisfaction and belief, he said, that the visit to China is historic for Serbia. Although China and Serbia have different roles at the beginning of the 21st century, the long-term friendly relations have been realized through a strategic partnership, Tadic said. China is the key economic factor in the world, Serbia is on its pathway to Europe, with a central position in southeastern Europe, Tadic said. It is very important that China supports Serbia in its efforts to become a member of the European Union (EU), because that is to the mutual interest, the Serbian president said. President Tadic said he was coming from Beijing where he had conferred with President Hu Jintao, and stressed that they had defined fiuture cooperation in those talks. There are three points - investing, securing profit for companies, and the realization of projects to the mutual welfare. China is an investor country, and Serbia wishes to renew its economic potential in a good geostrategic position, Tadic said. Serbia is becoming a huge construction site, he stressed, and the building of five bridges over the rivers Danube and Sava is planned in Belgrade and its vicinity alone. One of these bridges, linking Zemun and Borca across the Danube, will be realized with the help of a credit from the China Exim Bank and with the engagement of companies from China. That bridge will be the first Chinese-built bridge in Europe and it will span the biggest European navigable corridor - the River Danube, Tadic said, and invited Chinese businessmen to invest in Serbia. The Serbian President said his visit was very successful. Doors have been opened to the Serbian government and businessmen to realize a strategic partnership through economic profit and to the mutual benefit, President Tadic said.