Nikolic arrives in China, set to attend military parade

Nikolic arrives in China, set to attend military parade

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has arrived in China for a state visit.

He will attend a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of victory over fascism in Beijing on September 3, the president's office said on Sunday.

During his visit to the People's Republic of China, President Nikolic will meet with President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Keqiang.

The president was welcomed at the airport in Beijing by a Chinese government official, the release states.

On the first day of his visit. Nikolic met with Ren Hongbin, chairman of the China National Machinery Industry Corporation (Sinomach) and Zhang Chun, president of China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC).

A memorandum was signed on this occasion to open a meat production facility in Kragujevac, central Serbia.

"Serbia and China have very good bilateral relations that can be improved significantly by strengthening their economic cooperation," said Nikolic, according to a statement from his office, which added:

"China has so far invested in infrastructure projects in Serbia, and I insisted on investments in production. There are more reasons for this - besides the promotion of economic cooperation, investing in production is a reason for our Chinese friends to stay in Serbia permanently, which would not be the case with investments in infrastructure."

He added that the signing of a memorandum of understanding between CMEC and the city of Kragujevac was "a big step forward in the promotion of economic cooperation between the two countries."

Sinomach Chairman Ren Hongbin "thanked the Serbian president for his support."

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