The Chinese president arrived in the capital of Hungary after his visit to Serbia

Xi Jinping’s three-day visit to Hungary is intended to commemorate the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

He began his European tour on Sunday in France, where he held talks with President Emmanuel Macron on various topics, including the war in Ukraine.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Chinese president visited Serbia, which, like Hungary, is considered a friendly country for Moscow, which started a war in Ukraine more than two years ago.

China has invested billions of euros in Serbia and other neighboring Balkan countries, mostly in mining and manufacturing. In addition, Beijing and Belgrade signed a free trade agreement last year.

On Wednesday, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic received Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan in a ceremonial reception at the main government premises in Belgrade.

The Chinese leader was greeted with a salute and shook hands with officials, including the prime minister and the head of the National Bank of Serbia.

Later, both leaders waved to the crowd from the balcony, and A. Vucic called the Chinese president a friend of Serbia.

“He will not find the kind of respect and love that he will find here, in our Serbia, anywhere else,” stated A. Vučičius.

He also told the crowd: “We have a clear and simple position on China’s territorial integrity. Yes, Taiwan is China.”

China considers the self-governing island part of its territory and has vowed to take it one day, by force if necessary.

In his opening speech at the meeting, the Chinese president mentioned “the strong sense of friendship between our two countries.”

They later signed a joint declaration together, including commercial commitments to buy new Chinese trains, new air lines and increased Serbian imports.