BUDAPEST:
China and Hungary on Thursday upgraded ties to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for the new era, marking the latest step in China’s drive to deepen cooperation with Central and Eastern European (CEE) states.
The decision was announced during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Hungary, the final stop on his three-nation swing across Europe.
It also came a day after China and Serbia decided to build a community with a shared future, an upgrade of their relationship from the comprehensive strategic partnership established eight years ago.
The inclusion of Serbia and Hungary — major Central and Eastern European countries — in Xi’s first trip abroad this year and his first visit to Europe in nearly five years underscores China’s commitment to strengthening cooperation with area.
During talks with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán here on Thursday, Xi said China-CEEC cooperation has strong domestic momentum, expressing hope that Hungary will continue to play an important role in promoting China-CEEC cooperation for the benefit of of the respective People.
China-Hungary relations are currently in the best period in history, and their comprehensive strategic partnership has maintained high-level development. By deepening the policy of mutual trust and fruitful cooperation in various fields, the two countries have set a model for building a new type of international relations, Xi said.
Most of the CEE countries are emerging markets, which have significant potential, especially in connectivity and energy investments.
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Joining forces with China since 2012, deepening cooperation has not only promoted their economic and social development, but also advanced the process of European integration.
This strategic alignment has been underpinned by strong investment flows. From January to March 2024 alone, China’s investment in CEE increased by 36.35 percent compared to the previous year, reaching approximately US$450 million. As of March 2024, the cumulative total of Chinese investment in the CEE region has soared to $5.2 billion.
Take Hungary for example. In 2023, Hungary was able to attract a total of 13 billion euros (about $13.86 billion) in foreign direct investment, of which about 8 billion euros (about $8.53 billion) came from China, the Hungarian Minister of National Economy Marton Nagy in the interview with Xinhua.
The Hungarian side looks forward to further cooperation with China in the fields of foreign trade, capital investment, infrastructure, logistics, artificial intelligence and new energy, among others, he said.
This also applies to Serbia. “Over the past two years, China has emerged as the largest foreign direct investor in Serbia, bringing many benefits to the country,” said Jelena Grubor Stefanovic, director of the representative office of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China.
“Now Serbia has more opportunities to systematically focus its efforts on attracting investment from China in industrial sectors with high added value such as life sciences, digital economy, automotive industry, smart agriculture sector and green development,” he said.
These investments, combined with cooperation projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), such as the Belgrade-Budapest railway and the port of Piraeus in Greece, continue to benefit people in the CEE region.
Belt and Road cooperation has given Serbia significant opportunities to strengthen connectivity and promote economic development with neighboring countries, said Ivona Ladjevac, deputy director of the Institute of International Policy and Economics in Serbia.
Key infrastructure projects such as the Belgrade-Budapest Railway and the E763 highway have strengthened Serbia’s status as a regional transport hub, the expert said.
Xi’s visit to Europe comes as Washington maneuvers to rally its allies in Europe to “distancing” from China and slow the country’s progress in high technology, while escalating protectionist rhetoric on so-called “Chinese overcapacity” in clean energy sectors .
Chen Fengying, a researcher at the China Institutes of Modern International Relations, said China’s enhanced cooperation with Serbia and Hungary has boosted local economic development and raised living standards.
This success is a compelling example of the tangible benefits of forging partnerships with China and collective progress, Chen said.
Such an achievement has also exerted a remarkable inspiration and motivational influence on other CEE countries, he added.
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