China supports Egypt in playing a bigger role

Premier Li Qiang returned to Beijing on Friday after wrapping up a two-day official Egypt visit, during which the two countries secured a number of agreements in the fields of e-commerce, green and low-carbon development, finance and health.

During his visit to Egypt on Wednesday and Thursday, Li stressed on multiple occasions that China stands ready to align its development strategies with Egypt, advance Belt and Road cooperation, enrich the comprehensive strategic partnership and promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

When meeting with Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Kamal Madbouly, Li said that China has always prioritized developing relations with Egypt in its Middle East diplomacy.

He called on the two countries to promote more investment, optimize bilateral trade and expand cooperation in emerging fields such as new energy, electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and the digital economy. China is willing to work with Egypt to create more highlights of cooperation and new growth drivers, he added.

China is a major trade and investment partner for Egypt. Statistics show that bilateral trade exceeded $17 billion last year and Chinese investments in Egypt have surged, especially in the Suez Canal Economic Zone.

Noting that China and Egypt will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties next year, Li said China is willing to maintain close high-level exchanges with Egypt, strengthen strategic dialogue, consolidate political mutual trust and deepen practical cooperation.

He called on both sides to support each other on the path to modernization and bring more benefits to the people.

China supports Egypt in playing a bigger role in international and regional affairs, and is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with Egypt within multilateral frameworks such as the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to practice genuine multilateralism and defend the common interests of developing countries, Li added.

Madbouly said Egypt and China have been enjoying longstanding and profound relations.

In recent years, under the leadership of the two heads of state, the Egypt-China comprehensive strategic partnership has shown a strong momentum and is at its best in history, he said.

"Chinese investments in Egypt can be classified as a win-win model, as Egypt benefits from Chinese technology, job creation and more," former Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf told Xinhua.

"The cooperation between developing countries and China cannot be underestimated," said Sharaf, also a member of the Advisory Council of the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. "If fully activated, it would create tremendous power and form a strong synergy for the Global South."

Experts also noted that Li's visit to Egypt provided an opportunity for the two countries to jointly contribute to greater stability and certainty to the world.

"In a world facing increasing turbulence, the solidarity of Global South countries is more important than ever," said Wang Guangda, secretary-general of the China-Arab Research Center on Reform and Development and a professor at Shanghai International Studies University.

"China and Egypt share common positions and support each other's national interests. They uphold the collective interests of Global South countries, setting an example and model for Global South cooperation," Wang added.

Sun Degang, director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Fudan University, said China and Egypt, both key members of Global South, strive to safeguard the development rights of developing countries and enhance their influence and voice in global governance.

He underlined the need to expand South-South cooperation beyond regional mechanisms, strengthening their collective presence and impact on the world stage.

On the path to modernization, China and Egypt share several similarities in their national conditions, such as having large populations, Sun noted.

The two countries can enhance exchanges of governance experiences, such as coordinating reform, development and stability, he added.