He introduced Tea House to his country 17 years ago. His translation of the famous Chinese play was his way of bridging two diverse cultures. So it's natural that as Serbia's ambassador to China, Miomir Udovicki knows the importance of cultural, educational and economic exchanges between China and Serbia, for only regular exchanges can take bilateral ties to new heights.

 

"We consider China a traditional friend and a good and trusted partner. We have a good understanding of one another's internal developments, and we support the priorities of the other side," says Udovicki. It's this measure of understanding that will never make Serbia shift from its adherence to the one-China policy, he says.

 

On the economic front, Udovicki says his country wants deeper ties with China. Trade between the two countries was worth more than US$788 million last year, according to figures of the Serbian embassy in China.

 

"To be frank, we have a very large trade deficit with China. But I don't want to blame the Chinese side for it because China is not only footwear and clothing. Those are only part of China. China is a leading economic, technological and financial power in the world."

 

That's why he wants Serbia to export more goods to China. He also wants to attract more Chinese investment to his country, through joint ventures perhaps. At present, only some big Chinese firms such as the CITIC Group, Huawei Group and Sinochem Corporation have a strong presence in Serbia, sharing their high technologies with companies in that country. But Udovicki says his country would love to welcome more Chinese investors in the fields of telecommunication, electronic equipment and machinery.

 

Bilateral cultural exchanges have picked up of late, though. In August last year, coinciding with the visit of State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan, a Confucius Institute was set up in Belgrade, complete with a faculty of Philology. It is the first of its kind in the Balkans and is a supportive institution of high-quality higher education for Serbs who want to learn Chinese language, literature and history.

 

"We started Chinese classes in the early 1970s," says Udovicki, who first came to China, Beijing Institute of Foreign Languages to be precise, in 1981 to study Chinese. "Even at that time, I spoke Chinese very well and had already translated some books."

 

One of the works he translated was Tea House, a powerful play penned by Lao She (1899-1966), one of the most renowned contemporary Chinese writers. The drama is set in a typical, old Beijing teahouse and follows the lives of its owner and his customers. With 60 characters drawn from all strata of society, it gives an insight into modern Chinese history, its twists and turns and the changes that took place over half a century.

 

The ambassador says his translation of the Tea House became very popular with his countrymen, especially those keen on knowing more about Chinese history and culture.

 

Udovicki loves the idea of Confucius Institutes. "China has a long and great history. It's important that it promotes its language and culture." He firmly believes the Confucius Institute in Belgrade will deepen and expand bilateral cooperation.

 

He, however, would like to see more people-to-people exchanges because it can better promote understanding between the two countries. Public figures can sometimes do a diplomat's job better, he says, citing the example of Bora Milutinovic. The Serbian was head coach of the Chinese football team between 2000 and 2002. In fact, China is one of the four countries that he led to the ultimate competition in football.

 

"Milu (the Chinese nickname of Milutinovic) is almost a legendary figure in China because he led the Chinese football team to the 2002 World Cup finals. That was the first time China played in the Cup finals, and he helped the Chinese become more familiar with Serbia," Udovicki says.

 

Other Serbs active in China's football circle are Ratomir Dujkovic, manager of the Olympic team and candidate for the national head coach, and Misha Kosanovic, another candidate for the head coach's post.

 

As a senior diplomat, Udovicki also knows how to make himself understood when it comes to his country's stance on Kosovo, which he says is of "crucial importance". The Serbian government is trying to resolve the Kosovo issue in a "realistic and flexible" way. The one important precondition is protecting Serbia's territorial integrity.

 

His remarks come just two days ahead of Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic's visit to China. "We consider this visit very important. This is a continuation of very good and constant political dialogue."

 

Two subjects will be high on Jeremic's agenda: promotion of bilateral economic ties and the Kosovo issue, Udovicki says. "We will present our stance on Kosovo once again. It means we are very, very much in favor of a flexible solution."

 

The UN has been running Serbia's southern province of Kosovo since 1999 after 78 days of NATO bombing forced Serbian forces out. Serbia has been saying repeatedly that Kosovo is an integral part of the country and vowed to keep it within its border. But Kosovo, where 90 percent of the 2 million population is ethnic Albanian, wants to break away for good.

 

"We are offering a high-level of and substantial autonomy to Kosovo," Udovicki says. "Kosovo will have legislative, judicial and administrative powers. But what we insist on is that Serbians and non-Albanians in Kosovo should be protected and that can (only) be achieved through a kind of local autonomy."

 

He is highly impressed by China's principle of "one country, two systems" in the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions. It's a great success, and a good example for resolving the Kosovo issue. Hong Kong celebrated 10 years of its reunification with the motherland in July, and that "shows the solution is workable. Hong Kong is still very prosperous. So is Macao", Udovicki says.

 

But Serbia doesn't want to copy China to resolve the Kosovo issue, he insists, because every problem is unique. "What we want to do is find a specific way to protect our territorial integrity."

 

"The international community should understand the Kosovo issue is very complex, and can only be resolved in a unique way. A resolution imposed forcibly or a unilateral proclamation of independence can create a big problem for the region and even the world," says Udovicki.

 

(China Daily September 11, 2007)