BOR, Serbia, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Serbia marked Miner's Day on Thursday, with President Aleksandar Vucic calling mining a mainstay of the national economy and energy stability.
In a message released by the Presidency's press service, Vucic praised miners as "the heroes of our country," stressing that every tonne of coal, ore or mineral brought up from underground reflected hard work, perseverance and the daily risks the job entails.
The eastern copper city of Bor celebrated the holiday with an award ceremony, exhibitions, cultural programs and sports events.
The day began with the miner's reveille, a traditional wake-up call passing through major city streets and neighborhoods, commemorating the 1903 strike by miners at the Senj Mine, who fought for better working conditions and shorter hours.
Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic presented the Sistek Engineer Award, the highest honor given by the Bor copper industry since 1968, to 16 recipients.
She said mining remained a pillar of Serbia's economy and local communities, employing more than 32,000 people and accounting for 2.9 percent of gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2026.
Eight years ago, the state found a strategic Chinese partner for the then-struggling Bor mine, she said, crediting the turnaround to cooperation among the state, local governments and China's Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd.
Serbia has become Europe's second-largest copper producer, the minister added.
"Today we have investment, higher output, jobs, a stronger local budget and measurable results of modernization," she said, adding that the two Zijin companies -- Serbia Zijin Copper and Serbia Zijin Mining -- were among Serbia's largest exporters.
The celebrations were organized by Serbia Zijin Copper and Serbia Zijin Mining, the Serbian subsidiaries of China's Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd., together with the city administration of Bor and the municipality of Majdanpek. ■
