During President Xi Jinping's state visit to Serbia, leaders of the two countries agreed to expand people-to-people exchanges in various fields and comprehensively deepen cultural, educational, sports, tourism and local cooperation. Among the first six pragmatic initiatives announced by China to support the construction of China-Serbia community of destiny in the new era, three involve humanistic exchanges: China will support 50 young Serbian scientists to go to China to carry out scientific research exchanges in the next three years; 300 Serbian teenagers will be invited to study in China in the next three years; the Serbian side is welcome to open additional direct flights from Belgrade to Shanghai, and the air transport enterprises of the two countries are encouraged to open direct flights from Belgrade to Guangzhou.
Humanistic exchanges have brought the hearts of the Chinese and Serbian people closer together. China and Serbia are far apart, but the two peoples have always been linked by their hearts and hands. On the new journey of building a community of destiny between China and Serbia in the new era, the two sides will always be good confidants of people's hearts and create a three-dimensional and diversified pattern of humanistic exchanges and local cooperation, so as to pass on China-Serbia friendly relations from generation to generation.
“Contribute to the promotion of cultural exchanges between Serbia and China”
In the classroom of the Chinese Cultural Center in Belgrade, Serbia, local students are taking Chinese lessons. Led by the teacher, the trainees read aloud in unison.
Nikola Vujosevic, 27 years old, is a local engineer, although he usually busy at work, he will come to class on Tuesdays and Thursdays on time. He told reporters that learning Chinese stems from his strong interest in Chinese medicine, “China has a long history and a profound culture. Learning Chinese is not only a way to learn about Chinese medicine, but also a way to gain a deeper understanding of traditional Chinese philosophy”.
The Chinese Cultural Center in Belgrade is the first Chinese cultural center established by China in the Western Balkans, and on June 17, 2016, President Xi Jinping and then Serbian President Nikolić attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the Chinese Cultural Center. The road and square outside the center were named “Confucius Street” and “China-Serbia Friendship Square” respectively. The Joint Communiqué of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia on the Inauguration of the Chinese Cultural Center in Belgrade is one of the important outcomes of President Xi Jinping's state visit to Serbia this year.
Wang Aiping, deputy director of the Chinese Cultural Center in Belgrade, said the center offers courses in Chinese language, traditional musical instruments, calligraphy and Tai Chi, and has organized a series of cultural brand activities, which are popular among local people.
“Humanistic exchanges are an important part of Serbia-China relations.” Serbian Minister of Culture Serakovic said, “In the future, we will make joint efforts to play the role of mutual cultural centers, better promote cultural exchanges between Serbia and China, and enhance the understanding and friendship between the two peoples.”
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Chinese language teaching at the University of Belgrade. In recent years, “Chinese language fever” continues to rise in Serbia. A number of universities have opened Chinese language departments, the University of Belgrade and the University of Novi Sad have opened Confucius Institutes, and more than 100 primary and secondary schools in Serbia have launched Chinese language teaching pilot programs. Li Yifan, a Serbian girl, won the 2023 Chinese Bridge Chinese Language Competition for World University Students.
Katarina Stojanovic, 25, a postgraduate student of acupuncture at Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, first came to China with her mother at the age of 6. In 2015, Stojanovic won the first prize of the 8th Hanyuqiao Chinese Language Competition for World High School Students for her fluency in Chinese. “Chinese language is an important bridge that allows me to recognize the wider world. The process of learning a language is also a process of civilization exchange and mutual understanding.” She looks forward to continuing to be a bridge of friendship between Serbia and China in the future, “contributing to the promotion of cultural exchanges between Serbia and China.”
“We expect more Chinese tourists this year.”
The National Museum of Serbia, located near Republic Square in downtown Belgrade, was built in 1844. Prehistoric stone tools, medieval frescoes, and modern paintings ...... are collected here in a collection of more than 400,000 items spanning thousands of years of history, making it the largest and oldest museum in Serbia. According to the introduction, the first international exchange exhibition after the opening of the museum in 2018 was the exhibition “Wenxin Wanxiang - Painting and Life of Ancient Chinese Literati”, which was jointly organized with Chinese cultural and museum institutions.
Museum lecturer Dena Babajic is very fond of Chinese culture and hopes to have the opportunity to go to China and see it. “This time, Serbia and China have reached a number of cooperation documents in the fields of culture and education, which will be conducive to better mutual learning between the two peoples and enhance our understanding and friendship with each other.” She said.
There is a Serbian proverb that says, “Mountains and hills do not meet, but people are always in touch with each other”. The Chinese say, “As long as two people share the same heart, even if they are miles apart, they will be like neighbors”. Culture plays an irreplaceable role in enhancing friendship and mutual trust and promoting people-to-people communication,” Selakovic said. President Xi Jinping attaches great importance to cultural exchanges, and under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, humanistic exchanges and cooperation between Serbia and China have achieved rich results.”
There are green lawns and many tourists in the historic Kalemegdan Park in downtown Belgrade. Serbian young man Mirjan Boznovic, who runs an archery experience program in the park, told reporters that he can obviously feel that there are more and more Chinese tourists coming to Serbia as well as Kalemegdan Park.
In recent years, the “visa-free + direct flight” effect between China and Serbia has continued to gain momentum, and tourism cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries have continued to heat up. 2023, China participated in the 44th Belgrade International Tourism Fair as the guest of honor. Chinese logos can be seen everywhere on the exhibition site. More Chinese tourists coming to Serbia is the common wish of local tourism departments and travel agencies. From January to November in 2023, the year-on-year increase of Chinese tourists to Serbia amounted to 2.3 times.
“President Xi Jinping's visit provides an important opportunity to deepen tourism cooperation between Serbia and China. We look forward to welcoming more Chinese tourists this year.” In order to attract more Chinese tourists and enhance their travel experience, Serbia will join hands with neighboring countries to promote tourism resources, said Maria Labovic, director of Serbia's National Tourism Administration.
Tourism cooperation between Serbia and China is also showing a diversified trend. In May, 2023, Serbia's Luban Workshop was officially inaugurated, which is operated by the China-Serbia Tourism Academy, a joint venture between China's Zhejiang Institute of Tourism Vocational Studies and Serbia's Belgrade Institute of Applied Technology, and not only provides Chinese cooking courses for Serbian students, but also organizes study and exchange trips to Serbia for Chinese students. “The establishment of the Luban Workshop in Serbia is an excellent model of humanistic cooperation between the two countries, which will provide a new platform for the people of the two countries, especially the youth of the two countries, to get closer to each other, understand each other's cultures, expand their vocational skills, and create more opportunities for the youth.” Sasha, dean of the School of Hotel Management at the Belgrade Institute of Applied Technology, said.
“Use music and culture to build a bridge between people.”
In recent years, cultural exchanges between China and Serbia have become increasingly popular. The two countries have jointly organized the “Joyful Spring Festival” activities for many consecutive years, and the Chinese and Serbian Spring Festival concerts, Zhejiang Wu Opera tours, Quanzhou intangible legacy exhibitions and other activities have been warmly received in the local community, and the excellent Chinese cultural performances have attracted the Serbian people to actively participate in them.
A series of short documentaries Opportunity China, which explores the source of vitality of global development, and Confucius Street No. 1, which shows the dialogue of civilizations across time and space, have been launched on Radio and Television of Serbia since May 7 this year. The international cultural exchange program Beauty and Communion composes the story of the nine-member management team of China's Hesteel leading Serbia's Smederevo Steel Plant out of the difficult situation into a percussion-based Symphony of Iron and Steel, which shows the process of the two countries' “iron and steel people” cooperating and creating brilliance together.
“Co-construction of the ‘Belt and Road’ has not only helped both Serbia and China achieve fruitful results in economic cooperation, but also given more possibilities for humanistic exchanges.” Serbian writer Slobodan Vladušić said the works of Milorad Pavić, Serbia's most popular contemporary writer, have been translated into Chinese and have generated a warm response among Chinese readers. He believes that the “Belt and Road” will promote the translation and publication of more literary works between the two countries, so that readers can more intuitively appreciate the charm of the literary works of the two countries.
Serbian musician Slobodan Tegula has been to China many times for exchanges and performances, and more than 10 years ago, he was connected with China through the Shanghai World Expo, and Chinese fans gave him the Chinese name “Flying Dragon”. 2023 China's Spring Festival Gala, Flying Dragon and Lang Lang, Lu Siqing, performed Serbian folk song That Faraway Place. “After Serbia joined the ‘Belt and Road’ program, I went to China more often. Co-construction of 'Belt and Road' is like a bond that ties the two peoples together.” Feilong said, “Serbian and Chinese cultures have more in common than we can imagine. I firmly believe in the hardcore friendship between China and Serbia and will do the best to fully support it and build bridges between people with music and culture.”