The international version of "The Classic Quotes by Xi Jinping", a multilingual TV program featuring Chinese President Xi Jinping's quotes from ancient Chinese classics in his speeches and articles, began airing on Serbian media outlets on Tuesday.
A launch ceremony for the program, produced by China's flagship broadcaster China Media Group (CMG), was held in Belgrade on Tuesday, to coincide with Xi's state visit to Serbia.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic delivered a video message to the event and congratulated the producers on the broadcast of the program in Serbia.
Vucic warmly welcomed President Xi's visit to Serbia. He expressed his gratitude to CMG for its great efforts in promoting Serbia-China friendship. Serbia warmly welcomes CMG activities in the country and looks forward to strengthening exchanges in various ways in the future, to bring Serbia-China friendship to a new level, he said.
In his speech, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin said that this program will enable people to have an in-depth understanding of President Xi's thoughts and help deepen the brotherly friendship between Serbia and China.
Some attendees said that the CMG has always been committed to promoting cultural exchanges between the two countries, enhancing affinity of the people of the two countries, so as to open a new chapter for the inheritance of their friendship.
It is believed that the premiere of the program in Serbia can open a window for Serbian people to understand President Xi's wisdom in governance and understand Chinese culture, thereby helping them understand the unique charm of China in the new era.
Focusing on the themes of common prosperity and ecological civilization, the programs include famous quotes from ancient Chinese classics that Xi has used in his important speeches, articles and talks, vividly showcasing Xi's rich knowledge of traditional Chinese culture, and introducing and interpreting the defining symbols, connotation and value of Chinese culture in the global arena for a new era.
The program and its promotional video have been aired by other media outlets across Europe and around the world, including the pan-European news channel Euronews and France's BFM Business.
At the invitation of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Xi is paying a state visit to Serbia, eight years after his last visit to the country.
Serbia is the second leg of Xi's three-nation European tour from May 5 to 10, which also includes France and Hungary.
CMG program "Classic Quotes by Xi Jinping" aired in Serbia
A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi made a hard landing in Iran's northwestern province of East Azerbaijan on Sunday, state-run IRIB TV reported.
Raisi’s helicopter was part of a convoy of three helicopters which was on its way from Khoda Afarin County, where Raisi had attended the inauguration ceremony of a storage dam along with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, to the provincial capital Tabriz where Raisi was scheduled to attend the inauguration of a petrochemical complex, according to the report.
"On May 19 local time, the helicopter carrying Iranian President Raisi made a hard landing in East Azerbaijan in northwestern Iran. According to our investigation in Iran, the incident took place near the Varzaghan area of East Azerbaijan. From the live broadcast on Iranian national television, we can see that the entire area of the accident site is in a state of severe foggy weather, which caused great trouble to the search and rescue work. In addition to Iranian President Raisi, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the governor of East Azerbaijan Province, and other officials and entourage were also on the helicopter," said Li Jiannan, a CCTV reporter in Iran.
Speaking to IRIB TV, Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi attributed the helicopter's rough landing to the unfavorable weather conditions, which he said also impacted search and rescue work.
The head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society Pirhossein Kolivand told IRIB TV that 40 rapid reaction teams had rushed to the scene and were monitoring the region while noting that there were difficulties in reaching the scene by land or by air due to the mountainous terrain and the bad weather conditions.
Kolivand, however, said drones were being used to search the region.
Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Mohammad Baqeri has ordered the army, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and the police to make all-out efforts to search for and rescue the president and his accompanying team, said the Iran Newspaper.
Speaking to IRIB TV, Iranian Health Minister Bahram Einollahi said medical teams had been stationed near the possible crash site.
Iranian government spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi said in a post on social media platform X that Vice President Mohsen Mansouri and several cabinet members were on their way to Tabriz after a meeting in Tehran.
Following the incident, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei expressed his hope that President Raisi and accompanying officials would be able to return home safely, saying that everyone should pray for them. Iranian people do not need to worry, and the work of the country and the government will not be affected, he said.
Following reports of the incident, leaders of neighboring countries, including Azerbaijan and Iraq, expressed concern over the developments and said they were ready to assist in search and rescue efforts.
The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on the same day, saying that Türkiye is following the incident and hopes that Iranian President Raisi, Foreign Minister Abdollahian and other Iranian officials are safe and healthy. Türkiye has taken action to provide support for the search and rescue operation, the statement said.
Iranian president's helicopter makes hard landing in NW province
