China thanked for supporting Serbia's territorial integrity

China thanked for supporting Serbia's territorial integrity

"Serbia is ready for full membership in the EU but if recognising Kosovo's independence (unilaterally declared by ethnic Albanians in 2008) emerges as a condition on that path, it will be an insurmountable obstacle," Nikolic was quoted as saying in a statement from the presidential press office.

He briefed the Chinese prime minister on Pristina's intentions to request that UNESCO declare the Serbian cultural heritage in the province as "Kosovo's", noting that "many monasteries in Kosovo-Metohija were destroyed in the pogrom carried out by ethnic Albanians in 2004."

If the initiative is accepted, the Serbian cultural heritage, which is six to nine centuries old, will be destroyed completely, the Serbian president noted.

"We understand Serbia's efforts to preserve its territory, its people and its cultural heritage and, for that reason, we are ready for dialogue on the matter," the Chinese prime minister said.

Regional stability is very important to us and we respect your wish to become a full EU member. We want to have a joint constructive role in preserving global peace, Li noted.

Nikolic and Li also agreed in Beijing on Wednesday that excellent political relations between the two countries are a good basis for a new, higher level of economic cooperation.

At his meeting with Li, Nikolic highlighted the possibility of joint investments in the construction of factories in Serbia and exports to third markets, the president's press office issued in a statement.

Nikolic also said that economic development and increase in employment are Serbia's main goals, qualifying as precious the Chinese prime minister's support in achieving these goals.

The Serbian president proposed that the Chinese party once again considers the financing conditions for the Belgrade-Budapest railway and pointed to the importance of building a Morava-Vardar channel.

Prime Minister Li thanked Nikolic for his great contribution to the improvement of bilateral relations.

We will encourage Chinese companies to invest into production in Serbia, and we are ready to support all the projects proposed by Serbia. We want to take active part in the renewal of your country, he stressed.

Li Keqiang also expressed China's readiness to reconsider the financing conditions for the Belgrade-Budapest railway.

Moreover, Nikolic and Li talked about companies such as FAP Priboj, Zastava Kragujevac, RD Center, ZTE in Belgrade, Huawei in Kragujevac and the industrial complex for the processing of agricultural products in the Sumadija region.