Most Pupinov (also known as the “Chinese Bridge” or the Zemun–Borča Bridge), named after the Serbian physicist Mihajlo Pupin, is a key element of Belgrade’s logistics infrastructure and part of the Danube crossing system in the Serbian capital. This structure plays an important role as a component of the city’s transport network, relieving traffic congestion in the center and holding significance beyond the local level within the Danube infrastructure system—a river that also flows through European Union and NATO member states.How did a bridge over the Danube become a symbol of a larger geopolitical game? The Zemun–Borča Bridge, together with its accompanying road system, was the first joint project implemented after China and Serbia signed an agreement on infrastructure cooperation. It was also the first bridge built by Chinese companies in Europe.(1) Construction began in 2011—still before Xi Jinping officially announced the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013. It became the second bridge over the Danube in Belgrade after the Pančevo Bridge, which was built in 1946.
Infrastructure often serves as an element of great-power competition for influence in particular regions. Construction projects have a social and political dimension: they improve living conditions for residents and can shape the way the investor and the country behind it are perceived. In this way, infrastructure contributes to building a positive image and strengthening long-term economic and political ties. The Pupin Bridge fits into China’s broader strategy of creating networks of economic and political connections through investments beyond its own borders.
The authorities in Belgrade pursue a policy of neutrality, openly declaring that Serbia will not join NATO—a stance largely resulting from the experience of the Kosovo War and Operation Allied Force in 1999. The bombing campaign against Yugoslavia targeted not only military objectives but also critical infrastructure, including bridges over the Danube, roads, railways, energy infrastructure, and industrial facilities. This demonstrated that transport and technical infrastructure has not only economic but also strategic and military importance.(2) Serbia currently cooperates with the Alliance within the NATO Partnership for Peace program, a political-military initiative it joined on 14 December 2006. Participation in the program allows for joint military exercises. Serbian forces also conduct exercises with other countries, including Russia and China, which indicates that Serbia is currently balancing politically between different centers of influence.
Bilateral relations between Serbia and China have strengthened under the current president, Aleksandar Vučić. Serbia is part of the international Belt and Road Initiative. In 2023, the two countries signed a free trade agreement. Serbia’s openness to Chinese companies is evident in the activities of construction and engineering firms that are building new roads, motorways, energy facilities, railways, and industrial plants. Serbia currently imports far more from China than it exports. Exports are limited to natural resources and agricultural products, while it imports electronics, machinery, industrial equipment, and consumer goods from Asia. In the area of security cooperation, Serbia was the first European country to purchase Chinese drones and an air defense system. Looking ahead, in July 2026, the first stage of humanoid robot production was planned to begin in Serbia as part of Chinese-Serbian cooperation.(3) Has Serbia, as the podcast title suggests, become a Chinese wedge in Europe amid the growing rivalry between China and the United States? The dominant Orthodox religion and historical and cultural ties with Russia foster a positive image of Russia among parts of Serbian society. An additional factor influencing China’s position in Serbia is the convergence of interests between Beijing and Moscow in selected areas of international policy, which in parts of Serbian public debate may contribute to viewing China as an alternative partner to Western countries. In the face of growing great-power rivalry, the question remains open as to how long Serbia will be able to maintain its policy of balancing between the European Union, Russia, and China.
Belgrade is located in the northern part of Serbia along the Danube and Sava rivers. The Serbian capital ranks third among the largest cities on the banks of the Danube, after Vienna and Budapest. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central and Eastern Europe. Belgrade is called the “city of layers,” which reflects the character of its urban form, in which every historical era has left its mark and the influence of diverse political decisions on the urban fabric remains visible to this day. The period of Ottoman rule left behind architectural and urban heritage in the central part of Belgrade, one element of which is the historic, organic layout of streets with irregular courses. The city was subsequently rebuilt multiple times in the 19th and 20th centuries, yet parts of the old spatial structure still affect contemporary transport challenges. The Pupin Bridge, connecting Zemun and Borča across the Danube, provides an additional crossing in Belgrade’s transport system, improving traffic distribution and reducing pressure on existing road connections.The bridge is located in the northwestern part of the city. It connects an industrial park on the southern bank of the Danube with, among other things, a residential district on the northern bank. It lies approximately 13 km from Nikola Tesla Airport, Serbia’s main air hub, and about 18 km from the A1 (E-75) motorway connecting Belgrade with Novi Sad (the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina) and onward to the Hungarian border. It forms part of the European E-75 route, which is partially linked to historic north–south corridors. The entire route stretches over 5,600 km from Norway to Greece.
The bridge carries a road consisting of two separate carriageways, each with three lanes in each direction. “On the loess plateau on the right side of the river, the road was built on an embankment 1 to 2 meters high. The terrain on the left side of the river consists of alluvial deposits; it is characterized by a very high groundwater level (1 to 3 m) and partial flooding. On this section, the road also runs on an embankment. Embankment heights typically range from 1 to 3 m, but increase to 6 m in the area of approach ramps to bridges and viaducts. On this section of the route, it was not possible to obtain material from local borrow pits for embankment construction, so the best solution proved to be extracting sand from the Danube riverbed. The standard width of the river is 700 m, while during floods the Danube reaches a width of approximately 1,100 m. At the bridge location, the lowest navigable water level is 70.10 m above sea level, and the highest is 74.36 m above sea level, with the navigation channel measuring 150 x 9.5 m. The bridge structure was divided into four sections: the southern approach bridge, the main bridge, the bridge over the riverside area, and the northern approach bridge.”(4) Such technical solutions show that the project was planned from the outset as an element of high-capacity infrastructure with regional importance, and not merely a local Danube crossing.
Why did one of the first major Chinese infrastructure projects in Europe become a bridge in Serbia, and not, for example, in Romania, Bulgaria, or Hungary?Serbia is not a member of the EU, so it is not fully subject to Union public procurement procedures and investment oversight. This facilitates the implementation of projects by Chinese companies. It pursues a multi-vector policy, maintaining relations simultaneously with the EU, China, and Russia. It occupies a strategic location in the Balkans on important transport corridors connecting Central Europe with the southern part of the continent.
The most far-reaching in their consequences are those political decisions that are implemented in the form of infrastructure. It is here that the true power of such undertakings begins to become visible in both space and time. Some infrastructure investments have changed the course of history: the Suez Canal shortened the trade route between Europe and Asia, the Aswan Dam (High Dam) became a symbol of Egypt’s independence, the Trans-Siberian Railway integrated the vast territories of the Russian Empire, and Roman roads in antiquity served administrative and logistical functions, enabling efficient governance and the movement of armies. Infrastructure can increase the geopolitical accessibility of regions, improve their international connectivity, and make natural environmental barriers—such as mountains—more accessible through tunnels, turn rivers into navigable routes thanks to bridges and ports, and drive urbanization through the location of power plants. At the same time, infrastructure of geopolitical importance can generate long-term social consequences. In addition to increasing mobility and economic opportunities, it can lead to new economic dependencies, transformations of local social structures, and changes in the perception of relations between the investing state and the society of the recipient country.The Pupin Bridge constitutes an element of at least two geopolitical puzzles: as part of the Danube infrastructure—a river flowing mostly through EU and NATO countries—and as a competitive Chinese investment under the Belt and Road Initiative. The Pupin Bridge is not merely a symbol. It connects specific areas, improves the flow of people and goods, and fits into broader transport corridors. This infrastructure can have significance for economic resilience, mobility, and potentially also security.
1.China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), Pupin Bridge (Zemun-Borča Bridge), [online] available at: https://www.crbc.com/site/crbcEN/517/info/2015/204065.html?id=570e2bf6-b830-4fd4-80d9-1c51e2336193 [accessed: 23.07.2026].
2.Skomra W., Wojtasik K., Critical Infrastructure as a Target of Hybrid Activities. Case Studies of Attacks on Critical Infrastructure Facilities and Systems, [pdf], https://doi.org/10.4467/27204383TER.25.001.21504, pp. 21-22 [accessed: 23.07.2026].
3.Domachowska A., Serbia. A Chinese Wedge in Europe?, podcast “Travel without a Passport”, YouTube, available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoxWloTAWGc [accessed: 23.07.2026].
4.Pavkov D., Stanković M., Kasa G., Češljević B., Construction of Zemun-Borča Bridge Across Danube and its Approach Roads, pp. 529-530, in: The Eighth International Conference „Bridges in Danube Basin”. New Trends in Bridge Engineering and Efficient Solutions for Large and Medium Span Bridges, Conference paper, First Online: 01 January 2013.
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