On the afternoon of June 17, 2016 local time, the first event of President Xi Jinping and his wife Mme. Peng Liyuan, who just arrived in Belgrade for a state visit to Serbia, was to pay condolences to the three Chinese martyrs died in the bombing incident of former Chinese Embassy in Federal Republic of Yugoslavia at the old embassy site. The three martyrs were Shao Yunhuan, Xu Xinghu and Zhu Ying. All Cabinet members of Serbia, led by President Tomislav Nikolic, Speaker of the National Assembly Maja Gojkovic and Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic also attended the event.

When Xi Jinping and Mme. Peng Liyuan arrived, President Tomislav Nikolic and his wife Mme. Dragica Nikolic welcomed them at the parking spot.

At around 4:30 pm local time, the condolence ceremony began. Military band played solemn music and present people stood in a solemn atmosphere. Honor guards of Serbia carried a wreath while Xi Jinping and Tomislav Nikolic walked along side and stopped at the cenotaph. When Serbian honor guards laid the wreath to the cenotaph, both heads of state stepped forward to arrange the ribbon, which reads "In Memory of Martyrs of Shao Yunhuan, Xu Xinghu and Zhu Ying". After a 30-second-long silence tribute, the military band played national anthems of China and Serbia. Afterwards, Mme. Peng Liyuan, Mme. Dragica Nikolic, Speaker Maja Gojkovic, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, all cabinet members of Serbia and all members of the Chinese delegation laid flowers to the cenotaph in turns.

The two heads of state stressed that the profound traditional friendship and the special friendly relations between China and Serbia are forged with blood and lives and will be passed on for generations. China and Serbia will join hands in promoting development and seeking peace.

Wang Huning, Li Zhanshu, Yang Jiechi and others attended the condolence ceremony.

On May 7, 1999, US-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces carried out a barbaric missile attack on the Chinese Embassy amid its bombing of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which left the three journalists who were working in the Embassy, namely Shao Yunhuan of Xinhua News Agency, and Xu Xinghu and Zhu Ying of the Guangming Daily newspaper, dead, dozens of others injured, and the embassy premise severely damaged. To commemorate the fallen Chinese martyrs died in the NATO bombing and thank China for its valuable support to Serbia during its hardest time, the Belgrade city government set up the cenotaph in front of the bombarded embassy site on May 7, 2009.