On the evening of May 25, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić was awarded the Friendship Medal at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Filip Filipović, an international student at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs at Fudan University, was invited to attend the ceremony.
Below is his first-person account of the experience.
As a Serbian PhD student who has studied and lived at Fudan University for many years, I was deeply honoured to be invited to attend this important event and to witness yet another historic moment in the development of China-Serbia relations.
The Great Hall of the People that evening was solemn and dignified. The national flags of China and Serbia were arranged in neat formation, ceremonial music filled the hall, and the guests in attendance rose to mark the occasion. President Xi Jinping presented President Vučić with the Friendship Medal, the highest state honour of the People’s Republic of China awarded to foreign recipients. To witness this moment in person left a deep impression on me. It was not only an unforgettable honour, but also a vivid and profound lesson in international relations.
I first entered Fudan University in 2016. That same year, President Xi Jinping paid a historic visit to Serbia, marking a new stage in the development of China-Serbia relations. For me personally, 2016 was also an important starting point. Since beginning my studies at Fudan, I have gradually become involved in people-to-people exchanges between China and Serbia. At first, I started with language and translation work, helping Serbian scholars understand and translate Chinese documents and assisting Serbian academics during their visits to Fudan. Later, as my studies deepened, I became involved in a wider range of activities related to media communication, academic exchange, youth dialogue, and China-Serbia relations.
My practical and academic experiences at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs have made me increasingly aware that relations between countries are not abstract concepts. They are built through real people, meaningful exchanges, and concrete forms of cooperation. As a Serbian student who has lived in China for many years and grown between Chinese and Serbian cultures, I feel deeply fortunate to have received guidance and support from Fudan. What began as learning and exchanging ideas on campus gradually opened the door to broader platforms. Through academic visits, media exchanges, Belt and Road-related forums, the China International Import Expo, and other major events, I have come to understand more deeply what it truly means to serve as a bridge.
I still remember writing in my personal statement when I applied for graduate studies at Fudan that I hoped one day to become a bridge between China and Serbia. When I was younger, my understanding of this ideal was relatively simple. To me, being a bridge meant helping with language, translation, and communication. But over the years, as I gained more academic, professional, and life experience, I gradually came to realise that a true bridge must do more than connect words across languages. It must also connect histories, cultures, institutions, and the shared emotions of peoples. It means fostering mutual understanding between different civilisations, building trust between different countries, and advancing exchanges and cooperation through concrete and sustained efforts.
Attending the Friendship Medal conferment ceremony made me feel even more strongly how closely personal destiny and relations between countries can be intertwined. China-Serbia friendship has weathered storms and continued to deepen through repeated moments of mutual support in difficult times. From infrastructure construction to cooperation in trade, education, media, and high technology, and from people-to-people exchanges to the building of a community with a shared future, China-Serbia relations have continued to advance on the foundation of a profound friendship, entering a new stage of more practical, comprehensive, and closer cooperation. For those who have long followed and participated in the development of China-Serbia relations, this medal is not only a profound recognition of President Vučić’s personal contributions, but also a symbol of the continuation and elevation of the deep friendship between the two peoples.
At the ceremony, I also met many senior figures and friends who have long devoted themselves to the development of China-Serbia relations. They included representatives from Serbia’s foreign affairs and government departments, as well as Chinese diplomats, scholars, media professionals, and people from various sectors who have worked on China-Serbia exchanges for many years. It is through the sustained efforts of so many individuals that China-Serbia friendship has been transformed from vision into reality, from political mutual trust into concrete projects, and from high-level exchanges into genuine people-to-people connectivity. For me, this was also an extremely valuable learning opportunity. Standing in the same hall with senior figures who have worked tirelessly for China-Serbia relations over many years, I deeply felt that I still have much to learn, absorb, and improve.
Looking back on this journey, I feel especially grateful to Fudan University for the guidance, support, and opportunities it has given me along the way. Fudan’s open and inclusive academic environment, rich humanistic tradition, and international educational platform have provided me with an important foundation for understanding China, studying international relations, and participating in exchanges between China and other countries. It was at Fudan that I continuously improved my academic abilities and gradually clarified the direction of my future efforts. The support of teachers, classmates, and various university platforms enabled me to take part in more practical exchange activities beyond my studies, connecting classroom knowledge with the development of state-to-state relations.
I also wish to express my gratitude to all the senior figures who have offered help and guidance during my involvement in China-Serbia exchanges. Whether they are senior representatives in Serbia’s foreign affairs system who have long cared for and supported the growth of Serbian students abroad, or Serbian officials and friends in government, trade, and cultural exchanges who have given me trust and encouragement, their support has strengthened my conviction that the younger generation, too, can play a meaningful role in fostering friendly relations between countries. Much of this support may not have appeared in the public spotlight, but it is precisely this encouragement, trust, and guidance that have given me opportunities to grow and made me cherish even more deeply everything I witnessed that evening.
For me personally, attending the Friendship Medal conferment ceremony was the highest-level official event I have participated in during my time in China. It was also a deeply important moment in my student life. It has made me even more determined to continue working hard, to integrate my personal growth into the broader cause of China-Serbia friendship, and to turn what I have learned and gained at Fudan into concrete actions that promote exchanges between the two countries.
The future of China-Serbia relations will ultimately require more young people to understand, participate in, and carry forward this friendship. I sincerely hope that more international students from Serbia and around the world will come to Fudan, deepen their understanding of China through their studies and lives here, and serve as bridges between their home countries and China. The preciousness of the China-Serbia iron-clad friendship lies precisely in the fact that it belongs not only to the past and the present, but also to the generations to come.
Witnessing this historic moment in person was a profound honour and a deep source of encouragement. Going forward, as a Fudan student and a member of the Serbian youth, I will continue to do my utmost to contribute to people-to-people and academic exchanges, as well as to the enduring friendship between China and Serbia.
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Translated by: Felice Yingqi Lin
Proofread by: Mahek
