00:00Actually, in the background of this visit is the opportunity to mark the 20 years of
00:06established diplomatic relationship. And I think it is very important and quite extraordinary
00:11because it is not so often that ministers of such a large country come to visit Montenegro.
00:19You visited China as Prime Minister in 2012 when talks on Chinese investment were just beginning.
00:26How has the relationship changed since then?
00:30Well, I think the relationship has improved, obviously, and especially the fact that some
00:38of the largest and very important infrastructural projects have been carried out through the
00:44framework of cooperation with China. I remember back then in 2012, we also took part in the
00:49initiative of some of the regional multilateral initiatives that China back then initiated.
00:54And thanks for that and bilateral framework of cooperation, we managed, as I said, to carry
01:01out some very important infrastructural projects, namely one extremely important and difficult
01:08to build section of the highway. But it's also it's not only that. I think cooperation regarding trade,
01:14also energy, infrastructure and other aspects of the business side of the relationship has been going forward.
01:25You mentioned the highway and the first stretch of the China built motorway costs more than one billion dollars and
01:32work on the second section began this summer.
01:37Well, I think it's been a dream of many generations to better interconnect Montenegro and to better connect Montenegro with
01:45other countries.
01:46And this particular corridor that brings Montenegro closer to Serbia and Central Europe has always been extremely important.
01:53Also, that spirit of cooperation comes people and Chinese visitor numbers to Montenegro rose by more than 30 percent last
02:00year.
02:01And Montenegrins can now travel to China without a visa. Beyond tourism, where do you see the biggest opportunities for
02:08the two countries right now?
02:10Well, I think some of the opportunities are already there. We talked about infrastructure, building roads, but it's also energy
02:19infrastructure,
02:19further developing energy potential of Montenegro. You mentioned tourism and possibility to connect people even more.
02:30And I'm I'm I'm actually very glad to see that those numbers grow.
02:35And then that's today. Montenegro people are also allowed to travel to China without visas.
02:41And obviously, not only that, I think a lot of more small and medium sized companies that look for opportunities
02:46in getting connected with Chinese producers,
02:49or many things to try to improve the quality of their services.
02:53So there is obviously a plenty of possibilities that exist.
02:57And I just hope that good political framework that exists between two countries will actually help to deepen economic cooperation.
03:07You can see that full interview with Igor Lukic by scanning the QR code on the screen, which takes you
03:12to our YouTube page.
03:16Now, the International Association of Fire Services says having volunteer firefighters in every village helps.
