President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi arrived in the Chinese capital Beijing at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping on a state visit to China, AP News reports.
Egypt and China on Wednesday signed agreements deepening their co-operation during the visit of the Egyptian president on Tuesday.
Al-Sisi, accompanied by Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, witnessed the signing alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping at a ceremony that coincided with the 10th anniversary of the comprehensive strategic partnership between Egypt and China.
The Egyptian delegation discussed bilateral relations and stability in the Middle East in light of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian presidency said in a statement. It gave no further details.
The agreements include co-operation under China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which involves Chinese companies in building Chinese-funded transport, energy and infrastructure projects abroad.
Al-Sisi will attend the inaugural session of the tenth ministerial meeting of the China-Arab Co-operation Forum along with many Arab leaders and the Chinese president. The leaders will also address a number of topics related to Sino-Arab ties and strategies to improve them at the forum.
China has invested billions of dollars in Egyptian state projects, including the Suez Canal Economic Zone and the new administrative capital east of Cairo.
Investment between Egypt and China will be around $14 billion in 2023, up from $16.6 billion in 2022, according to the latest figures released by Egypt’s statistics agency.
