China and Egypt have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations following a meeting between senior officials in Beijing on Friday.
Chinese top political adviser Wang Huning met with Egyptian Senate Speaker Essam El Din Ahmed Mohamed Farid, days after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Egypt.
Wang described Xi’s visit as successful and historic, saying the two presidents reached broad consensus that had provided a new direction for the development of relations between the two countries.
He said China was ready to work with Egypt to implement the agreements reached by the two leaders, expand mutually beneficial cooperation and advance efforts to build a China-Egypt community with a shared future.
The meeting followed Xi’s September 1–2 state visit to Egypt, which coincided with the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Egypt was the first Arab and African country to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China in 1956.
Farid said Egypt-China relations had maintained steady development over the past seven decades, with cooperation expanding across several sectors.
He said Egypt was prepared to participate actively in the Belt and Road Initiative and strengthen cooperation with China in areas including trade, the economy, science and technology.
The two countries’ leaders had earlier agreed to deepen their comprehensive strategic partnership, including cooperation in infrastructure, energy, manufacturing, technology, renewable energy, artificial intelligence and digital transformation.
They also agreed to strengthen cooperation in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and work towards positioning Egypt as a regional hub connecting Asia, Africa and Europe.
The latest meeting in Beijing therefore comes as both countries seek to translate the agreements reached during Xi’s visit into concrete programmes and expanded bilateral cooperation.
