“A well-regulated legal system developed in line with international standards, which provides security to citizens and commercial entities, is a necessary pre-condition for the creation of a favourable business climate and it represents one of the most important tasks within the reform processes in the Republic of Serbia”, Minister Kuburović stated at today’s opening of the International Legal Cooperation Forum - part of the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative -, which is being held from 2nd to 3rd July in Beijing. The Justice Minister stressed that the judicial reform involved great efforts being made towards the improvement of legal security, the quality and the efficiency of the justice sector, such as the introduction of public notaries into Serbia’s legal system in 2014. She noted that in 2016, the Serbian Chamber of Public Notaries had been accepted by the International Union of Notaries to which the Chinese Public Notary Union also belongs.

“In the past several years, we have made important steps towards improving the efficiency of the judiciary by accelerating court proceedings and lowering court fees, particularly through the use of modern ICT systems and alternative methods of dispute resolution”, Minister Kuburović pointed out. She explained that mediation had been recognised as a special way of improving judicial efficiency, often proving to be the best solution for commercial entities because it allowed for flexibility and informality, it ensured confidentiality, it saved time and money, and it offered a range of solutions to settling disputes. “We have invested a lot into raising awareness about mediation, advancing the skills of mediators and encouraging the courts and the Public Defender’s Office to use alternative dispute resolution methods so to increase the efficiency and the effectiveness of the judiciary, including optimise the available resources“, Kuburović noted.

She explained that the Serbian Ministry of Justice was strongly in favour of mediation because it was a fast and a less expensive method of dispute resolution that was being conducted in good faith of the disputed parties, resulting in the preservation of friendships and partnerships. “We acknowledge the efforts of the International Academy of the Belt and Road in a form of the “Blue Book of Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms”, which highlights the advantages of mediation and simultaneously focuses on the cultural differences between the disputing parties, the transparency of the procedure and the respect for both contracting parties’ interests”, Kuburović explained. “Without a doubt, mediation should be given advantage over any court proceedings. That is why our next efforts will be towards harmonising the mediation system with the international standards, in due consideration of the different cultures, traditions, legal and political systems, and particularly the economic cooperation“, the Minister highlighted.

She stated that disputes would be inevitable given that the “Belt and Road” Initiative encompassed a wide and an intensified inter-state and economic cooperation, explaining that the manner in which states would deal with those disputes would make all the difference and would set the foundations of the future success of the cooperation. “Arbitration has many advantages as a formal method for resolving disputes between commercial entities, such as flexibility, confidentiality and the possibility of compulsory enforcement“, the Minister added.

Discussing international legal cooperation in criminal and civil law matters between the Republic of Serbia and the PR of China, Minister Kuburović said that such cooperation was being conducted pursuant to certain United Nations conventions and organisations. “The Republic of Serbia has presented its counter-parts in China with four agreements on judicial cooperation, which, if signed, would allow us to fill the existing gap and strengthen the legal status of Chinese companies operating in Serbia, and by doing so, further strengthen their legal security and improve the status of citizens and the protection of their rights in both countries “, Kuburović noted.

The Justice Minister recalled that the partner relations between the once Yugoslavia, now the Republic of Serbia and the PR of China, since their inception in 2009, had been fortified by numerous highest-level visits. She explained that ever since the President of China Xi Jinping visited Serbia in 2016, the relations had been elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership. “We may openly say that we have an iron friendship“, Kuburović highlighted.

The Justice Minister said that Serbia supported the “Belt and Road” Initiative which the President of the PR of China Xi Jinping had launched, as was evident from the participation of the President of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić in the Initiative’s First International Forum for Cooperation. “The mechanism of cooperation between China and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe which has become an integral part of the “Belt and Road” Initiative, represents an important forum in which our country takes part with pleasure”, the Minister stressed, recalling how the Third China-CEE Summit - which had taken place in December 2014 in Belgrade - had resulted in the “Belgrade Directions” which defined the future direction of the cooperation.

She explained that the economic cooperation between the two countries had been developing in all areas successfully and that the PR of China was Serbia’s largest and most important financial partner in Asia, with direct investments from China on the rise. The Justice Minister said that Johnson Electric, a world leading manufacturer of electrical engines, had opened a factory in Serbia, that Eurofiber had opened a yarn factory and that the construction of the Chinese industrial company Mei Ta factory for car engine parts was underway. “I would like to highlight the examples of the former Železara Smederevo which has been acquired by Hesteel Group Co. and the Serbian-Chinese industrial park on the outskirts of Belgrade, as well as the current preparations for the opening of an electrical cars factory and a factory for car tyres“, Kuburović said.

The Justice Minister pointed out that the Chinese partners were involved in the implementation of numerous road and energy infrastructural projects, of which the most important was the modernisation of the Belgrade-Budapest railway. “Serbia leads in the number of contracted and finalised infrastructural projects with China, including compared to other countries of the Central and Eastern Europe by virtue of the China-CEE cooperation mechanism“, Minister Kuburović  said.

In terms of energy and mining, the Minister noted that the implementation of the “Thermal power plant Kostolac-B” Project was of great importance, seen as it involved the redevelopment of existing energy blocks and the construction of desulphorisation plants, the construction of a dock on the Danube and the construction of a rail infrastructure. “Since the enforcement of the Visa Free Agreement in 2017, the number of tourist visits to and between the PR China and the Republic of Serbia has risen significantly. The direct flight connection between Belgrade and Beijing which opened in September 2017 greatly contributed to the increased number of tourist visits”, Kuburović explained, adding that cooperation in the culture, education, science and technology sectors had also increased with various projects successfully completed. “The Cultural Cooperation Program for 2017-2020 has been signed. During China’s Premier Li’s visit to Serbia in 2014, the Agreement on the Establishment of Cultural Centres was signed. This Agreement is being implemented now“, the Minister said, noting that the first international exhibition to be held at the recently re-opened National Museum in Belgrade, following a decade-long renovation, would be dedicated to the Chinese culture.

 

In conclusion, Minister Kuburović thanked once more for China’s principled stand on the status of Kosovo and Metohija and its commitment to reaching solutions by dialogue with full respect of the Republic of Serbia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.