Serbian president Aleksandar Vučić has joined world leaders who have recently expressed solidarity to China in its fight against the spread of COVID-19.

"We want to tell the people of the People's Republic of China that we are here with you, all we can do as a small country is to be ready, with any help we can" said Vučić.

The Serbian president has voiced his admiration for the quick way the Chinese government is coping with the emergency, building new hospitals in record time, and said he's convinced that "China will emerge from this great anguish and great problem even stronger and show its leadership in the modern world."

Other important figures in the Serbian establishment joined Vučić in his message of solidarity to China.

"What the Chinese government has done towards this new epidemic is absolutely amazing," said Željko Jadranin, Deputy Director of the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology of Serbian Military Medical College.

"They adopted strong and comprehensive anti-virus measures in a remarkably quick and efficient response to the unexpected virus outbreak, the speed how they recognized the new epidemic, identified the virus, shared information with the world.

"China is practically setting new standards in how new and unknown epidemics should be combated."

Serbian Minister of Health Zlatibor Lončar echoed these confident words, saying his certain that China will "come out of this crisis" and "they will make it all up very quickly." 

Serbia hasn't had any reported case of coronavirus, but the impact of the health emergency in China has reached this small Eastern European country. The Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Serbia, the auto manufacturing company based in Kragujevac, Serbia, was temporarily shut down for lack of components coming from China.

(Cover image: AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)