BELGRADE, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Prime minister of Serbia and Greece agreed here on Tuesday to start negotiations on reconstruction of the railway that connects Serbian capital city Belgrade and Greek northern city of Thessaloniki.
The visiting Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade on Tuesday.
After their meeting, Vucic said that one of the most important topics of their meeting was the 650 km-long joint railway project that would accelerate both passenger and cargo transport from Belgrade to Thessaloniki.
"Currently, a cargo train needs 49 hours to arrive there, and this needs to be decreased to 30 hours by year 2020. While passenger trains would need around six hours to reach Thessaloniki. This would significantly influence economic cooperation between the two countries," Vucic said.
According to the Servian PM, he agreed with Tsipras to establish a joint council of the two countries comprised of government members which will meet this spring to discuss details of the railway project, as well as other planned projects.
"We are fully prepared to get into this project, having in mind that we have a favorable situation in state budget," said Vucic.
Tsipras also highlighted the importance of the reconstruction of the railway line between Belgrade and Thessaloniki, saying the "modern railway network would enable citizens as well as goods from the port of Piraeus to reach Belgrade faster."
According to Tsipras, Greece is the third biggest investor in Serbia, and the two countries need to raise their relations to level of strategic cooperation.
He revealed that this spring in Thessaloniki the two governments will, besides the railway project, talk about initiating further cooperation in areas of energy, infrastructure, communication and technology.
The two prime ministers also discussed their relations and cooperation with other countries, including some outside the European Union.
"We talked about our relations towards partners who are not EU members and agreed it is necessary to maintain good relations with China, as well as Russia and other countries," Vucic said.
"I think that the opening of the New Suez Canal and the cooperation with China could turn Greece into a major hub, while Serbia could become a bridge connecting Western and Eastern Europe," Tsipras said.
Tsipras arrived in Belgrade together with a Greek state delegation for a two-day visit.
He was officially welcomed by Vucic and other government members in front of the Palace Serbia, before his meeting with Vucic, the first between the two government leaders after seven years.
Tsipras's agenda in Serbia also includes meetings with Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic, Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic as well as participation in a Greece-Serbia business forum.
On Wednesday, the second day of his visit, Tsipras will meet with speaker Maja Gojkovic and lay wreath at the monument of the 18th century Greek revolutionary Rigas Feraios here in the Serbian capital.
