On June 17, 2016 local time, President Xi Jinping arrived in Belgrade by special plane, starting his state visit to the Republic of Serbia.

When Xi Jinping's special plane entered the airspace of Serbia, fighter jets of Serbian Air Force and Air Defence took off to escort the plane. At around 2:00 pm local time, the special plane arrived at the Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport. When Xi Jinping and his wife Mme. Peng Liyuan stepped out of the cabin, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic and his wife, President of the National Assembly Maja Gojkovic, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, and other officials were greeting them at the airport. They also went to the gangway ladder to warmly shake hands with Xi Jinping and Mme. Peng Liyuan, extending their warm welcome to visits of Xi Jinping and Mme. Peng Liyuan. Local children presented flowers, bread and salt to Xi Jinping and Mme. Peng Liyuan in accordance with local tradition to greet distinguished guests. Local people gave a performance of joyful Kolo, a traditional folk dance.

Xi Jinping extended sincere greetings and best wishes to the Serbian people. Xi Jinping stressed that the traditional friendship between the two countries and peoples has become even firmer as time goes by. In recent years, especially since the establishment of the strategic partnership between China and Serbia in 2009, bilateral relations have run on a fast track. Both sides have enjoyed firm mutual political trust, colorful and fruitful practical cooperation in all sectors, vigorous people-to-people and cultural communication as well as increasingly frequent personnel exchanges. Both nations have maintained communication and cooperation in major international and regional affairs and carried out sound cooperation in the construction of the "Belt and Road" and the framework of cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries. China stands ready to, together with Serbia, keep the momentum and push bilateral relations and practical cooperation to a higher level, thus creating a new situation for mutual benefit, win-win result and common development. I look forward to exchanging in-depth views with Serbian leaders on bilateral relations and other issues of common concern and drawing the blueprint for future bilateral relations, so as to open up a new historic chapter for bilateral relations.

Wang Huning, Li Zhanshu, Yang Jiechi and other delegation members arrived by the same plane.

H.E. Li Manchang, Chinese Ambassador to Serbia, also greeted them at the airport.

After concluding his state visit to Serbia, Xi Jinping will also pay state visits to Poland and Uzbekistan and attend the 16th Meeting of Heads of State Council of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Tashkent.