SMEDEREVO, Serbia — China's Ministry of Commerce started training courses here on Tuesday for Serbian workers of the iron and steel manufacturer HBIS Serbia.

The training took place with the support of the Chinese Academy for International Business Officials (AIBO) of China's ministry of commerce.

Tian Yishu, political counselor of the Chinese embassy to Serbia, said the Smederevo Steel Mill, which was purchased by HBIS Group last year, was an exemplary project of Serbia-China cooperation. The training courses will become the new momentum for the factory's future growth, he said.

HBIS Vice President Li Bingjun said the HBIS Serbia employee training was in business management this year. It is to be the first of three courses that will take place in Serbia with an aim "to turn HBIS Serbia into a representative model of international cooperation within the production along the new Silk Road that will bring visible benefits to Serbian employees."

"One year after the purchase of the Smederevo Steel Mill, HBIS turned losses of the 100-year-old factory into profits and rejuvenated it," Li concluded.

Milun Trivunac, state secretary of the Serbian ministry of economy, said the seminars would teach the employees new technologies and stressed that "knowhow is most important thing for people in Serbia," besides all the investments coming from the Chinese company.

A total of 1,520 workers of HBIS Serbia will benefit from eight courses in total "in order to support the Belt and Road Initiative as well as the requirements of international cooperation and the production capacities," said Tang Xiaodong, commercial counselor at the Chinese Embassy to Serbia.

HBIS Group bought Smederevo Steel Mill from the Serbian government last year for 46 million euros ($52 million).