Serbian Ambassador to China: Seeing Opportunities Instead of Risks from China
In 1993, Serbian girl Maya Stefanovic came to Liaoning Normal University to learn Chinese from scratch. The 10 months of studying and living in Dalian have left her with beautiful memories. In 2022, Stefanovic will come to China again as the Serbian Ambassador to China. In a recent interview with our newspaper, she said, "Being an ambassador to China has been the highest honor of my 25 year career as a diplomat. Maintaining and developing relations with China is the responsibility of almost every Serbian diplomat."
"Moved by the goodwill of ordinary Chinese people"
Last October, Stefanovich, who had recently taken office in China, received a special letter. The writer is a student majoring in Food Engineering at Jiangnan University, and Stefanovich is a stranger to him. This letter was handwritten in both Chinese and English, stating: "Serbia is our friend, and the two countries have a deep friendship. The Chinese people are very warm and hospitable, and welcome your arrival." The kindness of the stranger deeply moved Stefanovich, who immediately called the writer to express her gratitude. Since then, her WeChat circle has added an ordinary Chinese student. "This student did not know a Serbian in real life before, but his letter is filled with sincere feelings for Serbia, and this emotional connection is worth cherishing. I will always cherish this letter, which is a vivid example of the friendship between the people of Serbia and China," said Stefanovic.
There is a saying in Serbia: "Friends are the fruits of time." Having been with China for 30 years, Stefanovic has made many lifelong good friends and witnessed the "iron friendship" between Serbia and China becoming increasingly strong. Stefanovic cannot forget that in 1999, NATO bombed the Southern Alliance, causing a large number of civilian casualties. NATO also launched a brutal attack on the Chinese Embassy in Yugoslavia, and three Chinese journalists unfortunately sacrificed themselves in Belgrade. They stood with the Serbian people during the toughest and saddest times in Serbia and sacrificed their precious lives for it. Nowadays, the Belgrade Chinese Cultural Center Building has been built on the site of the bombed Chinese embassy in the South African Union, becoming another symbol of the "steadfast friendship" between Serbia and China, declaring to the world the common pursuit of fairness and justice and promoting world peace between Serbia and China.
Stefanovic also cannot forget that China is the first country in the world to provide medical assistance to Serbia in 2020, when Serbia is fighting against the COVID-19. The Chinese anti epidemic medical expert group and Serbian medical staff fought side by side for 82 days. In front of the Serbian Embassy in Beijing, many Chinese people spontaneously lined up to donate anti epidemic supplies. "There are many elderly people and children in the team. In order to support Serbia's fight against the epidemic, they donated their personal masks. We were moved by the kindness of ordinary Chinese people." Stefanovic sighed, "'Iron friendship 'is not a simple word, but the most authentic portrayal of the great and special friendship between our two peoples."
Recent photo of Serbian Ambassador to China Maya Stefanovic. Image provided by the Embassy of Serbia in China
"Chinese path to modernization benefits the world"
For the past 30 years, no matter where she is, Stefanovich has always been concerned about China's development, and her life has also kept up with the trend of Chinese society. "I started using WeChat in 2012, and I may be one of the earliest people to use it. I often browse Chinese social media, and it is important to maintain communication with Chinese netizens through this channel. I also watch movies that Chinese audiences like, and the movie" Me and My Motherland ", which is a tribute to the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China, is one of the best movies I have ever seen," said Stefanovich.
To witness the extraordinary course of China's journey, Stefanovich's understanding of Chinese path to modernization has been deepening. "The achievements of Chinese path to modernization have been achieved by the Chinese people under the leadership of the CPC with unswerving determination and persistent efforts. I am deeply honored to witness the rapid changes in China." Stephanovich said that an important enlightenment of Chinese path to modernization to the world is that a country must be based on its own national conditions and have its own characteristics when moving towards modernization. Chinese path to modernization is deeply rooted in China's excellent traditional culture, and has profound historical origins and cultural heritage. "Chinese history is not limited to 100 years. For thousands of years, Chinese civilization has made significant contributions to the world. Chinese people should be proud of China's excellent traditional culture and its contribution to the world."
Stefanovich believes that China, which is constantly moving towards modernization, will provide the world with more public goods. She highly appreciates China's view that "common development among all countries is true development", because "world prosperity and stability cannot be built on the foundation of the poorer and the richer.". She said that the "the Belt and Road" initiative and other Chinese programs fully demonstrate that Chinese path to modernization benefits the world. Each country can find a point of cooperation with China based on its own national strategy, development potential, and interests. "Serbia sees opportunities rather than risks from China," said Stefanovic.
Looking forward to the full opening of the Hungary Serbia Railway as soon as possible
In Serbia, tangible results of mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Serbia can be seen everywhere, and local people's support for deepening cooperation with China can be felt at all times. At the beginning of this year, citizens of Smederevo, Serbia's "steel city", watched lion dancing, learned calligraphy, painted sugar paintings, and spent the Chinese Spring Festival with Chinese friends. In 2016, Chinese companies took over the Smederevo steel plant during the most difficult times in this city, ensuring employment and family livelihoods for over 5000 people. "Under the 'the Belt and Road' initiative, many Chinese enterprises have invested in Serbia, benefiting not only Smederevo Steel Plant, but also Bor Copper. The investment of Chinese enterprises has not only helped improve the living standards of people in Smederevo and Bor, but also promoted the overall economic growth of Serbia. In recent years, these enterprises invested by China have become among Serbia's largest exporters." said Stefanovic.
China has brought not only investment but also convenient transportation to Serbia. The Hungary Serbia Railway is a flagship project of cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries, connecting Belgrade and the Hungarian capital Budapest. In March of this year, the Belgrade to Novisad section of the Hungary Serbia Railway celebrated its first anniversary of operation, fulfilling the Serbian people's "high-speed rail dream". The running time of trains between the two cities has been reduced from 90 minutes to 30 minutes, and many people have started living a "dual city life" between Belgrade and Novi Sad. Stefanovich is eager for the full opening of the Hungary Serbia Railway as soon as possible. She stated that as an important component of the China Europe Land Sea Express, the Hungary Serbia Railway connects the China Europe freight train line to the north. "I hope this railway not only benefits Serbia and Hungary, but also promotes regional linkage development."
Stefanovich has more expectations for the prospects of economic and trade cooperation between Serbia and China. She introduced that the Chinese e-commerce platform has opened the Serbian National Pavilion, and products such as Serbian wine and apple juice are very popular among Chinese consumers. Recently, Serbian honey and pet food have been approved for export to China. While striving to promote more high-quality products from Serbia to enter the Chinese market, Stefanovic also wants to introduce convenient mobile payments from China to Serbia. "In Serbia, Chinese e-commerce platforms are very popular, and many young people shop directly from Chinese merchants on them. With more and more Chinese tourists coming, I hope to also use mobile payments in Serbia," she said.
Planning/Wang Piyi
Reviewed by/Niu Ningmao Li
Copywriting/He Li
Interview/Mao Li, He Lili, Lu Ningyuan
Late stage/Lu Ningyuan
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