Landmark China-built Belgrade-Budapest Railway breaks ground in Serbia 

The construction of a new section of the China-constructed Belgrade-Budapest Railway was launched in Novi Sad City, Serbia, on Monday, with high-ranking officials from Serbia, Hungary and China marking the launch with a groundbreaking ceremony.

The 350-kilometer Budaphara-Serbia Railway is a landmark project of China and the Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs).

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/5XEDer0Q9k0

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto and Chinese Ambassador to Serbia Chen Bo took part in the groundbreaking ceremony for the Novi Sad – Subotica border section of the Budaphara-Serbia Railway, which links the capitals of Budapest and Belgrade. Ning Jizhe, vice chairman of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, delivered a speech via video.

The 350-kilometer Budaphara-Serbia Railway is a landmark project of China and the Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs). Located in northern Serbia, the Novi Sad – Subotica border section of the project is 108.1 km in length and is part of the ten Pan-European transport corridors. With a total investment of 1.162 billion U.S. dollars and a construction period of 33 months, the section also forms part of E85, Europe’s main international railway line. It is expected that the section will be built into a double-track railway with a maximum design speed of 200 kilometers per hour in the future.

On Oct 28, the Serbian side officially issued the construction permit for the section, marking the section can be formally constructed. Vucic highly appreciated the Chinese and Hungarian leaders to actively promote cooperation with Serbia, stressing that no one can destroy the friendship between the three nations. The president also thanked the Chinese government again for its positive efforts in advancing cooperation between Hungary and Serbia and bringing benefits to the Serbian people, adding that they will not forget China’s support to Serbia in its fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This project is very important for the future development of Serbia, and I’m not saying that out of courtesy. Without the support of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the mutual trust and cooperation between China, Hungary and Serbia, we could not achieve what we have achieved today,” said Vucic. Szijjarto pointed out that the practical cooperation between the three countries is very important.

The Hungarian section of the railway is under smooth and satisfactory progress with an estimated construction period of three years. He believes that the project will further consolidate the historical and traditional friendship between the three nations. “The choice made by Hungary and Serbia is in the interest of both countries and their peoples. Our practical cooperation with China is based on mutual benefit and win-win results,” Szijjarto said..

SOURCE: Built by China, 24 Nov 2021.

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