Vucic meets with HBIS, Bank of China, CNNC and ARIDGE representatives in Beijing

BEIJING - On the third day of his official visit to China, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with HBIS, Bank of China, CNNC and ARIDGE representatives in Beijing on Tuesday to discuss opportunities for cooperation and projects the companies could take part in.

"With representatives of HBIS and one of the world's largest banks, the Bank of China, (I spoke) about projects that have contributed to Serbia's strong and accelerated development in the past several years, as well as about Serbia's future large-scale investment plans they could take part in," Vucic posted on Instagram.

With representatives of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), Vucic discussed more concrete steps in cooperation, the CNNC being a key potential partner in the "important and strategic process of nuclear power development" in Serbia, he added.

"We devoted special attention to the exchange of know-how and experience, to modern technologies and possibilities for application of small modular reactors, which represent the future of a secure and sustainable energy sector," Vucic noted.

He added that, at the meeting with ARIDGE representatives, he had had an opportunity to present Serbia's capabilities to become one of the first countries in Europe where the advanced technology of flying cars would be showcased and applied, especially in the context of EXPO 2027 Belgrade, which he noted would take Serbia's development to a completely new level.

"We will continue discussions with companies that bring knowledge, technology and development because we want Serbia to keep up with the most advanced ones, and to show the citizens that what until recently seemed to be a distant future can become a part of our reality," Vucic posted.

Earlier, Vucic visited a leading-edge Xiaomi electric car plant in Beijing and spoke with Chen Bo, president of the China Institute of International Studies and former Chinese ambassador to Belgrade.

Vucic will be visiting China until May 28, at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Vucic: We have invited Xiaomi to invest in Serbia, take part in EXPO 2027

BEIJING - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Tuesday in Beijing he had invited the Chinese tech company Xiaomi to take part in EXPO 2027 Belgrade and invest in Serbia.

Speaking to reporters after a tour of a leading-edge Xiaomi electric car plant, Vucic said the company had plans to start producing cars in Europe from late 2027 and that Serbia had offered it the best subsidies.

"We will see what their response is, but we have invited them to take part in the EXPO to showcase their products, which would be a good first step. They plan to make a big entry to the European market in late 2027, including manufacture of cars on European soil, and that is why we invited them to come to the EXPO sooner so that they can get used to Serbia. They have their offices in Serbia because of smart phones and household appliances, but this is a completely different dimension," Vucic said.

He added that, judging by what he had seen at the factory, entire Europe was far behind China.

Vucic added that he hoped the friendship with China and all agreements made with the country and its President Xi Jinping would "make it possible for us to have at least a part of this technology in Serbia in the future."