If I were to sum up my journey in one sentence, it would be this: my life has unfolded in step with the deepening relationship between China and Serbia.

From entering high school in 2013 to beginning university in 2016 and now pursuing my PhD, the past decade has been a period of steady learning and growth — and a decade in which China-Serbia ties have expanded and matured. Many of the ideas in Xi Jinping: The Governance of China — including building a community with a shared future for humanity and advancing the Belt and Road Initiative — have shaped both global development and my understanding of international relations.

The year 2016 marked a turning point. It was the year I began my undergraduate studies, and the year President Xi Jinping paid a historic state visit to Serbia. His visit drew nationwide attention and sparked a surge of interest in China. Around the same time, the first volume of The Governance of China began to attract Serbian scholars. As an international relations major, I was among the earliest students to read it.

Because a full Serbian edition had not yet been published, several professors asked me to help translate the table of contents and selected chapters. I had never expected to play such a role, but this experience showed me how national-level ideas can intersect with personal effort. As an ordinary undergraduate student, I found myself becoming a small "bridge" for cross-cultural understanding.

By my senior year, I interned at the Consulate General of Serbia in Shanghai. There, I gained a firsthand sense of China's warmth toward Serbia. I saw daily exchanges between the two sides and supported basic consular services and cooperation projects. The enthusiasm of the Chinese visitors who came to learn more about Serbia convinced me that the distance between our peoples was steadily shrinking.

It was also a challenging period for Serbia. While some countries chose to step back, China offered timely support, from public health assistance to infrastructure cooperation. These actions demonstrated what "ironclad friendship" truly means. When President Xi says, "True friendship reveals itself in time of trouble," I understand it not as a slogan, but as something I witnessed.

From my undergraduate years through my master's program and into my PhD, The Governance of China has accompanied every stage of my development. By the time I entered my doctoral program, I had shifted from observer to participant — and, increasingly, a storyteller.

In 2024, when President Xi visited Serbia again, I was interviewed by several media outlets and appeared on China Central Television. It was a turning point that showed me how far I had come: from translating a few pages of an important book to speaking publicly about China-Serbia relations.

As my studies and entrepreneurial work progressed, I traveled frequently between the two countries and saw the visible results of bilateral cooperation. Modern highways in Serbia built with Chinese support have transformed transportation and brought new vitality to many regions. These improvements helped me better understand the real significance of the Belt and Road Initiative. It is not an abstract concept, but bridges, roads, and railways that ordinary people can see and use.

Serbia may be a small country, but China has never treated us as such. Principles emphasized in The Governance of China — common prosperity and equality among nations — have allowed Serbia to feel genuine respect. Our shared history and mutual understanding explain why the relationship between our two countries continues to grow.

From translating a book to speaking on international stages, my journey has been intertwined with the development of China-Serbia relations. I hope my generation will carry this friendship forward — and pass it on to the next.

Written by Filip Filipovic, a 28-year-old Serbian scholar who has lived in China for 20 years. He is currently a PhD candidate in international politics at Fudan University in Shanghai, focusing on the evolving dynamics of China's relations with Central and Eastern European countries.