June 15 (SeeNews) - Serbian infrastructure minister Zorana Mihajlovic said on Thursday China's investments in the country under the "One Belt, One Road" initiative currently stand at 5.5 billion euro ($6.1 billion).
Serbia plays an important role in the "One Belt, One Road" project and wishes to take advantage of its full potential, Mihajlovic said in an interview with China Central Television (CCTV), according to a Serbian government statement.
More Chinese investments are expected not only in Serbia, but in the entire region, as the "One Belt, One Road" project needs a well-developed infrastructure, Mihajlovic said.
Chinese companies bring new technology and know-how to Serbia, she noted.
Serbia cooperates with China on the project for the modernisation of the Belgrade-Budapest railway, part of pan-European transport Corridor X, and the construction of a motorway connecting Belgrade to Montenegro's Bar port, as part of Corridor XI, the Serbian government said.
Last month, Mihajlovic said she signed in Beijing two memoranda of understanding (MoU) with China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) for infrastructure works with a combined value of 2.5 billion euro. The contracts are for the construction of the Preljina-Pozega and Pozega-Boljare stretches of a motorway which will connect Belgrade to the border with Montenegro, and Fruskogorski Corridor, a 123 km-long road in Serbia's Vojvodina autonomous province.
($ = 0.895624 euro)