China and EU-candidate Serbia sign an agreement to build a ‘shared future’

China and Serbia deepen strategic partnership, paving the way for a shared future, despite EU concerns.

China and European Union candidate Serbia signed an agreement on Wednesday to build a “shared future,” making the Balkan country the first in Europe to agree on such a document with Beijing.

After meeting in Belgrade, Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Serbian President Vucic announced they would “deepen and elevate the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Serbia,” and “build a new era of a community with a shared future between China and Serbia."

Mr. Xi launched the term “community for shared future” over 10 years ago. While it may not denote a specific initiative, experts believe it has an underlying significance as another term for an alliance.

"Eight years ago, Serbia became China’s first comprehensive strategic partner in the Central and Eastern European region, and today Serbia is the first European country to build a community of destiny with China, fully reflecting the strategic, special and high level of China-Serbia relations,” Mr. Xi said during a press conference after signing the agreement.

Mr. Vucic said the two countries “are moving from strategic relations, through which we had managed to raise our bilateral ties, to the joint future of our two countries."

"That is the highest possible form of cooperation between two countries and I am proud that I was able to sign this today as the President of Serbia,” he added.

It was not immediately clear how the EU would respond to Serbia getting even closer to China. Russia's war on Ukraine has pushed the integration of six Western Balkan countries, including Serbia, into the EU at the top of the 27-nation bloc’s agenda.