The two countries’ shared history is complicated. Although there were Chinese students coming to study in the former Yugoslavia decades ago, Beijing and Belgrade then found themselves at odds ideologically.

“There was a divergence in what they thought Communism should be and so then the number of Chinese students started to be less and less to the point where there weren’t any Chinese students at all during Yugoslavia,” said Sunnie Rucker-Chang, a US-based professor who co-wrote a book about the growing Chinese community in Belgrade.

In the late 1990s, many residents from a small, working-class village in eastern China relocated to the Blok 70 neighbourhood of New Belgrade. The existence of large Chinese populations in places like Blok 70 makes it easier for newer Chinese communities to emerge, according to Rucker-Chang.

Experts said the amount of money Chinese students receive to study in Serbia also plays a factor in their decision to come to the south-east European country.

“One situation is where the Chinese government is primarily funding the students all the way. Another situation is where the Chinese government funds part and then there are matching funds that the Serbian government kicks in,” said Rucker-Chang.

Many universities in Serbia, like the University of Belgrade and the University of Novi Sad, have cooperation agreements with Chinese universities which enable their students to come and study in Serbia.

“More Chinese students will come to Serbia to study because Serbia and China now have a visa-free policy,” said Lijuan Gao, a Project Management student from Ningbo University.

Ningbo University, located in eastern China, is one of 15 Chinese universities that have a cooperation agreement with the University of Novi Sad, where Gao is currently studying.

The visa-free policy between China and Serbia was announced by both governments in 2017.

For Yutong, who was repeatedly turned down when trying to get a visa to study in the US, Serbia was a relatively easier alternative.

Different lifestyle