Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called on China and Egypt to support each other, deepen cooperation, and continue advancing the building of a China-Egypt community with a shared future amid a turbulent international and regional landscape.
Xi made the remarks during his talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, while emphasizing China’s support for regional countries in building a new security architecture in the Middle East via upholding a vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security.
ENHANCING BILATERAL EXCHANGES, COOPERATION
Noting that Egypt was the first Arab and African nation to establish diplomatic ties with the People’s Republic of China in 1956, Xi said that the older-generation leaders of the two countries led their peoples in striving side by side for national independence and against imperialism and colonialism, forging an unbreakable bond of friendship.
Over the past seven decades, China-Egypt relations have weathered challenges and developed distinctive features of equality and mutual trust, friendship and mutual learning, solidarity and mutual support, as well as win-win cooperation, he said.
Xi said the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership has achieved leapfrog development in recent years under the guidance of the two heads of state. The two sides share similar views and have closely aligned strategies in pursuing development and revitalization, improving people’s well-being, and upholding international fairness and justice, he added.
Xi emphasized that China and Egypt should firmly support each other, maintain the momentum of high-level exchanges, enhance exchanges and cooperation in all fields and at all levels, and strengthen exchanges and mutual learning on governance experience.
Xi said the two sides should promote mutually beneficial cooperation, better align their development strategies, tap the potential for cooperation in traditional fields such as infrastructure development, power, agriculture and communications technology, and foster new highlights of cooperation in green energy, electric vehicles, aerospace, the digital economy and modern agricultural technology.
The two sides should promote people-to-people exchanges, comprehensively expand exchanges and cooperation in culture, education, science and technology, health, sports and other fields, and facilitate personnel exchanges and enhance people-to-people bonds, Xi said.
The two sides should strengthen security cooperation, jointly combat transnational crime, deepen international cooperation in anti-corruption, firmly support each other’s anti-terror efforts, and safeguard their common security, Xi said.
The two sides should strengthen multilateral collaboration, further enhance coordination and cooperation on multilateral platforms such as the United Nations and the BRICS, jointly promote the development of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, jointly oppose unilateralism and acts of bullying, and promote a more just and equitable global governance system, Xi said.
For his part, Sisi welcomed Xi’s historic state visit to Egypt on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Sisi said that since the establishment of diplomatic relations, bilateral ties have developed in a sound and steady manner, and cooperation across various fields has yielded fruitful results.
Egypt firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is committed to further advancing the Egypt-China comprehensive strategic partnership, Sisi added.
Egypt is ready to work with China to deepen cooperation in trade and investment, manufacturing, infrastructure development, finance, science and technology, and new energy, strengthen military and security exchanges, and promote closer people-to-people exchanges, so as to benefit the two peoples and contribute to regional development and prosperity, Sisi said.
Sisi said China, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, plays an important and constructive role in international affairs. Egypt is ready to strengthen coordination with China at multilateral platforms, jointly address global challenges, and work together to uphold international fairness and justice, he added.
The two heads of state jointly witnessed the signing of multiple cooperation documents on Belt and Road cooperation, artificial intelligence, economic and trade, and industrial and supply chain cooperation.
The two sides also issued a joint statement on further deepening their comprehensive strategic partnership, and signed more than 20 cooperation documents covering such areas as digital economy, science and technology, education, and transportation.
NEW REGIONAL SECURITY ARCHITECTURE
In the talks, Xi raised a four-point proposal on building a new security architecture in the Middle East, saying that China supports countries in the region in developing good-neighborly and friendly relations.
To promote common security in the region, Xi said that efforts should be made to foster the internal driving force for common security in the region.
People in the Middle East should remain masters of their own affairs, and external interference should be rejected, Xi said, noting that China supports regional countries in strengthening dialogue on peace and security, exploring the building of a new security architecture for the Middle East, and taking their future into their own hands.
Xi said that a comprehensive approach should be adopted to advance common security in the region and that given the multiple hotspots in the Middle East and their close interconnections, comprehensive solutions should be pursued.
The Palestinian issue remains at the core of the Middle East question and should never be overlooked or marginalized, he added.
The foundation for common security should be strengthened through development, Xi said, noting that lasting peace and stability in the Middle East fundamentally depend on development.
China stands ready to work with Middle East countries to safeguard the security of international shipping lanes, advance development cooperation, promote the convergence of interests of regional countries, gradually enhance mutual trust, and eliminate the root causes of the conflict, he said.
Xi urged that international coordination for common security in the region should be strengthened, and the UN Charter and international law should serve as the fundamental principles for handling Middle East affairs.
The international community, especially external powers, should abandon double standards in the Middle East, respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of regional countries, and safeguard regional peace and stability, Xi added.
He also urged support for the United Nations’ effective role in Middle East affairs.
Sisi said that Egypt highly appreciates China’s consistent, objective, and impartial stance on the Middle East question, noting that Egypt is committed to promoting de-escalation in the region, resolving conflicts and differences through political means, and advancing regional security and development.
Egypt stands ready to continue strengthening coordination with China to ease tensions in the Middle East, safeguard regional stability, and explore a regional security architecture, Sisi said.
