The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, has been received like a star in Serbia: with the streets of Belgrade wallpapered with red flags and a crowd gathered next to the Serbian Palace, the seat of the Government, which applauded this morning (local time) Chinese leader and his Serbian counterpart, Aleksandar Vucic, when they came out together to greet. Xi thus begins, with a red carpet in front of him, the B side of the European tour, a journey without commercial quarrels or tensions due to the invasion of Ukraine orchestrated by his “old friend of his”—as he usually calls him— Vladimir Putin. The Asian leader landed in Belgrade on Tuesday night, after saying goodbye to Emmanuel Macron with a hug at the foot of the Pyrenees, a gesture of closeness despite the disputes and distance with the Frenchman, and with the EU in general.
As a declaration of intent to highlight the change of mood in this second leg of the trip, Xi published an opinion article in the Serbian press on Tuesday attacking NATO for the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade just 25 years ago, an attack that the United States explained as a mistake, but that Beijing does not forget. First dart. This Wednesday, before his arrival in Hungary – he is expected to land in the afternoon, after the official visit to Serbia – the leader published a new text in Magyar Nemzetthe newspaper closest to the Government, praising the “deep friendship” with Budapest, the fractious voice of the European Union and closest partner to Beijing (and Russia) of the Twenty-seven.
The Chinese president plans to spend until Friday in Hungary before ending his first trip abroad in 2024, which has meant his return to Europe five years later, with a world very different from that of then: upside down by wars and with the confirmation that the gap between the EU and the People’s Republic is much larger today than in 2019.
“China’s image has been extremely harmed by its position in relation to the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” a diplomatic source in Beijing said last week in response to Xi’s visit. Hungary is one of the few, perhaps the only one, where the Chinese image resists. The visit to this country is part of the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. The Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, was the only leader of the community bloc who attended the celebration of the tenth anniversary of the New Silk Road, the Chinese investment and infrastructure megaprogram, in Beijing in October. It was then that he challenged the European position by meeting with Putin and stating: “Hungary has never wanted to confront Russia.” Serbian Vucic was also there.
Both Serbia and Hungary have a great economic partner in China and they hope to seal numerous agreements with the Asian giant these days. Among the star projects of the New Silk Road is the train that will connect the capitals of both countries in less than three hours, five less than at present, according to the Chinese agency Xinhua. The works, carried out by Chinese contractors, are expected to be completed in 2026.
China became the first foreign investor in Serbia in 2022, and both countries signed a free trade agreement in 2023; This was one of almost 20 that were signed during Vucic’s visit to Beijing for the New Silk Road forum. According to the Serbian Government, during Xi’s visit, 29 agreements were signed in the presence of the presidents of the two countries, in addition to trade agreements between private companies in the field of health, biotechnology and agriculture.
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In a joint press conference between Vucic and Xi, the two leaders showed their harmony and closed ranks on territorial issues. “Taiwan is China,” Vucic stated, while Xi assured that his country supports Serbian efforts to defend its sovereignty in the case of Kosovo. The Serbian leader has also confirmed that security cooperation between the two will continue and has stated that Serbia “is a safer country with the help of the People’s Republic of China.”
In Hungary expectations are also high. The visit is seen from Brussels as an attempt to exploit internal divisions in the EU, according to the aforementioned diplomatic source. “Our bilateral relationship is at the best moment in history and has embarked on a golden journey,” Xi highlighted in the text published in the Hungarian press, in which he highlights the fact of having found the way for “sovereign states” independently carry out friendly exchanges.”
Independence
Independence is the key word: analysts consider that one of the objectives of the Chinese leader in Europe is to try to unsynchronize the Brussels clock from that of Washington; Both capitals have found in the defense of Ukraine the glue lost in the era of Donald Trump in the White House. Another purpose is to redirect relations with the EU and try to get it to reduce its “risk reduction” policy towards Beijing, a message that will be well received in Budapest.
“In recent times, relations between China and Europe show signs of stability,” Xi says in the article in the Hungarian newspaper, in which he explains his intention to strengthen cooperation with Hungary in clean energy, artificial intelligence, digital economy, development ecological and other emerging areas. Precisely those that the EU views with increasing suspicion.
Budapest can be a gateway for Beijing into the EU. While the European Commission is studying increasing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles from the current 10%, Orbán is giving fiscal and bureaucratic facilities to Chinese companies to set up shop in his country. In Debrecen, in the east, the state company CATL is building a battery factory for this type of vehicle, which represents the largest foreign direct investment in the country, with 7.3 billion euros, and new projects are expected to be announced these days.
But also, as the Chinese ambassador in Budapest, Gong Tao, stated in an appearance last week, “China hopes that Hungary will encourage the EU to adopt a more active and pragmatic policy” in relation to Beijing. Hungary assumes the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of the year, which gives it extra attractiveness during that period.
With part of European funding suspended due to the drift of the rule of law, Hungary also needs to diversify its sources of income and sees the relationship with China as an opportunity. Orbán, who has opening to the East as one of his priorities, recently defended a “global economy that will be organized according to the principle of mutual benefit, free of ideology.” China is the country’s ninth trading partner. During this week’s visit, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjartó expects 16 bilateral agreements to be signed. On his Facebook profile, the head of Hungarian diplomacy announced before Xi’s arrival that the Hungarian consular services will expedite the acquisition of visas for commercial purposes to enter Hungary, which is, in short, entering the Schengen area of The EU.
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