Xi's visit gives impetus to China-Egypt relations

President Xi Jinping's visit to Egypt earlier this month marked a milestone in bilateral relations and helped strengthen friendship and expand cooperation between the two countries, diplomats and officials say, calling for further pragmatic and intensified cooperation.

"Xi's visit to Egypt was a visit to strengthen friendship and expand cooperation," Liao Liqiang, China's ambassador to Egypt and representative to the League of Arab States, said, highlighting the strategic, leading and exemplary character of China-Egypt relations.

"The visit resulted in a joint statement and more than 20 cooperation documents covering a wide range of fields, including the Belt and Road Initiative, AI, economy and trade, industry and supply chains, the digital economy, science and technology, education, and transportation," he said.

Speaking at a reception in Cairo on Thursday to mark the 77th anniversary of the People's Republic of China, Liao highlighted the visit by Xi and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to the Grand Egyptian Museum as a symbol of the meeting of two ancient civilizations whose roots stretch back thousands of years, pointing to the deep historical and cultural bonds between the two peoples.

At the regional level, Liao said China would continue to support peace and dialogue in the Middle East, highlighting Xi's four-point proposal for promoting common security in the region.

Egyptian Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Mohamed Farid Saleh said the bilateral relations are rooted in a long history of friendship, trust and mutual respect.

"Egypt looks forward to further expanding Chinese investment in productive and export-oriented sectors, particularly high-tech industries, including automobiles and components, energy-storage batteries, solar panels, water desalination," he said.

The BRI is aligned with Egypt Vision 2030, particularly in developing value-added projects, deepening local content and supporting sustainable development, he said.

Farid highlighted the Suez Canal Economic Zone as an important platform for cooperation under the BRI, citing the cooperation with Chinese companies in the zone as a model for economic and technical cooperation and for attracting Chinese and international companies to Egypt.

"China has been Egypt's largest trading partner over the past decade, with bilateral trade reaching about $20 billion in 2025", he said.

"Chinese investment in Egypt involves 3,366 companies, with total investment costs approaching $10 billion."

The Egyptian government welcomes the expansion of Chinese companies already operating in the country, as well as new investments that can contribute to technology transfer, deeper local manufacturing, job creation and increased Egyptian exports to China, he said.

Positive outcomes

At a forum held on Wednesday, Amr Rashad, a member of the Egyptian Senate and vice-chairman of the Global Forum for Future Studies, said Xi's historic visit to Egypt produced positive outcomes and gave fresh momentum to bilateral relations.

He also applauded intensified cooperation in recent years, which is moving beyond traditional infrastructure and trade toward technology-intensive industries and strategic supply chains.

Huang Ping, chairman of the Chinese Enterprises Association at Tenth of Ramadan City, one of Egypt's major industrial centers, said the number of Chinese-funded companies in the city has grown from more than 40 in 2021 to over 300 now.

He pointed to growing potential for cooperation in electric vehicles and renewable energy, where Chinese companies can bring established manufacturing expertise and technology while responding to Egypt's growing demand for new-energy products.

The writer is a freelance journalist for China Daily.