Chinese President Xi Jinping arriving in Belgrade: Thousands of policemen will guard him, welcome ready

Photo: Instagram/buducnostsrbijeav

Chinese President Xi Jinping is arriving in Belgrade today for an official visit, and as Tanjug has learned, great security measures have been put in place on this occasion, so his delegation will be secured by 3,400 policemen.

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Xi will be welcomed by Serbian MiG-29 warplanes who will escort his own plane from the border to Belgrade, while the Serbian Army Guard will be lined up in his honor at the Belgrade airport.

Chinese and Serbian flags have been placed along the highway leading to the capital's center from the airport, and a ceremonial welcome of the Chinese delegation, numbering 400 people, will be organized in front of the Palace of Serbia in New Belgrade.

More than 30 agreements are planned to be signed.

An official lunch will be organized, and the Chinese president will have the opportunity to taste Serbian dishes and wines, and enjoy a program consisting of Serbian and Chinese music, set to end with the song, "This is Serbia."

The Chinese president will be hosted by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

The last time Xi was in Serbia was in 2016, which was the first visit of a president of China to Serbia in 32 years, and on that occasion the Declaration on Strategic Partnership was signed.

Vucic met with Xi in October last year in Beijing, during the third Belt and Road forum, when 18 agreements were signed, including the free trade agreement between Serbia and China, which should soon enter into force.

This is President Xi's first visit to Europe in the last five years, since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic, and during this European tour he will visit only three European capitals - Paris, Belgrade, and Budapest.

He started his five-day tour with a visit to France on May 5, he will be in Belgrade on May 7, and after that he will visit Budapest.

During the last meeting between the Chinese and Serbian presidents in October last year in Beijing, in addition to the free trade agreement, several bilateral documents were signed, such as those regarding police cooperation in managing emergency situations, the construction of roads, the Serbian-Chinese industrial park, the export of apples, and digitization.

(Telegraf.rs/Tanjug)