( CNN ) -- Serbia hosted the Third Meeting of Heads of Government of China and Central and Eastern Europe this week , marking the first visit of a Chinese Premiere to Belgrade in 28 years . The Balkan nation has positioned itself as an attractive destination for Chinese investment over the last decade , with a number of big projects in the pipeline . One of them is the China-funded Zemun-Borca bridge over the Danube river which was ceremonially opened by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Serbian prime minister Aleksandar Vucic Thursday . Serbia is increasingly looking to invest in big infrastructure projects in Southeast Europe in order to ease the passage of its goods from the Greek port of Piraeus , which is under a 35-year concession by Chinese shipping giant Cosco , to western Europe . CNN 's Paula Newton sat down with Vucic in Belgrade ahead of the summit to discuss the government 's efforts against corruption , Serbia 's strategy for EU membership and the Kosovo issue . An edited version of the interview follows . CNN : Strategically , why is it so important at this point in time to be having this summit and to invite so many different countries ? Aleksandar Vucic : It is actually the third summit in a row that is taking place here in Belgrade and we are very satisfied because of that fact . I 'm really jubilant to see 16 prime ministers in our country , in Belgrade . It means that Belgrade once again became a very open , connected city . Many people from all over the world would associate Serbia with some past times , with the wars , and some terrible times not only for Serbia but for the whole region . I dare to say today that Serbia is renewing its energy , Serbia is once again a very open society and a very open place for all our guests . CNN : What is China getting out of it ? Some wonder if they will have undue influence in this country , because of the strong economic ties ? AV : They get our money . It 's capitalism ; they invest something , they earn money and that 's it -- it 's a market economy . CNN : You 're all in competition , I would say , in these European countries for that Chinese investment .Do you think there 's enough around to go for everyone , or do you feel that it is a competitive environment right now ? AV : We do our best . Of course there is competition , that 's something very normal between countries and Serbia is not afraid of competition . From Serbia you have a very open market of one billion people , which means that we have free trade agreements with the European Union , and on the other hand we have free trade agreements with Russia , Belarus and Kazakhstan , as well as Turkey . We also have a very good relationship with many Asian countries , including China and Japan , and I think we still have many ties in the non-alignment movement . As former Yugoslavia , we were founders of the non-alignment movement and I think that many investors should come to Serbia to use our unique position . Also , we have very competitive labor costs , very high-skilled labor , and very educated and knowledgeable people . CNN : One of those important reforms is your anti-corruption pledge . What is the situation now ? AV : There is no problem with political will . There are no protected persons , there are no protected tycoons , protected politicians . The problem is that we still have an old system where people can work on each case for years , not to say for decades ... and that 's something that will have to change . CNN : Turning to EU membership , is 2020 the year that you 'll be able to fulfill all of Serbia 's requirements to gain membership ? AV : If you ask me whether I do hope for my country to become a new member state , yes I do . But it 's not something that I would like to promise to my people to gain some more political points and then not to deliver . What we can promise to our people is our deliverance -- to finish all the needed reforms to create a sustainable and great business environment in this country , a very good investment climate ... that will have a growth rate in 2016 and 2017 that we will be able to boast with . CNN : I want to ask you , will you categorically recognize Kosovo without any caveats , if that 's the condition for EU membership ? AV : I 've never heard of that condition . To say you have to recognize Kosovo as an independent state ... would be the kind of condition that would be saying or conveying a message to Serbia , `` OK , we do not expect you in the European Union very soon . ''
Serbia hosted the Third Meeting of Heads of Government of NATO and Central and Eastern Europe this year . CNN 's Paula Newton interviewed the Serbian Prime Minister Milan Vucic ahead of the summit .